The phenyl+phenyl reaction was studied in the temperature range 1230–1530K at pressures around 1bar in a shock tube with time-resolved mass-spectrometric detection. We found evidence for the displacement reaction C6H5+C6H5→C6H6+C6H4 to be important. To quantify the role of this reaction, the formation of ortho-, meta- and para-C 6 H 4 in the singlet and triplet states was characterized by statistical rate theory based on high-level quantum-chemical calculations. Arrhenius parameters for use in kinetic modeling calculations are given.