If you were to do a quick scan of an MMA pound-for-pound ranking, you’d find the usual suspects at the top—fighters like Anderson Silva and BJ Penn. However, when you got half way down the list, you might find an unrecognizable name. At a sinewy 135 pounds, the name Miguel Torres has gone mostly unnoticed in the world of mixed martial arts.
This year has changed all of that—Miguel has rightfully started to emerge as a breakout star.
Torres was born Jan. 18, 1981 in the small town of East Chicago, Indiana. He is a Mexican American mixed martial artist, who specializes in Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and possesses very potent Muay Thai striking. In September 2008 Torres received his black belt in BJJ from Carlson Gracie, Jr.
Judging by his unyielding record and sturdy Mexican name, one might think Miguel was a successful boxer. But Torres has taken the “fighting road” less traveled out of East Chicago
While Torres has been serving up losses to his foes since 2000, mainstream fans are just now starting to take notice. With WEC 37 right around the corner, MMA’s smallest superstar, and the WEC’s current bantamweight champion, is ready for stardom. Along with Urijah Faber, the WEC is banking on this one-loss fighter to take the WEC forward in 2009.
At WEC 37, Torres will face his toughest competitor to date, in fellow chicano Manny Tapia. Tapia is an undefeated fighter who also trains in Brazilian jiu-jitsu. Looking at submissions alone, one can easily distinguish the discrepancy in BJJ prowess. Torres has 20 submission wins to Tapia’s two. Torres will also have a decided height advantage—5'9" and 5'5" respectively.
Assuming Torres wins, one has to wonder what the future holds for this uber talented fighter. Miguel turns twenty-eight in January, so he looks to be in the prime of his career. While a victory over Tapia would certainly reinforce his status as “top dog” of the ever evolving bantamweight division, it seems like the WEC will want to capitalize on his 34-1 record, along with the other marketable aspects of his game.
His likely next opponent will be the winner between a surging Brian Bowles and Brazilian banger Will Ribeiro, who fight on the same card. But neither of these fights will launch Torres’s status into the atmosphere. Enter Urijah Faber; the WEC’s other star who, despite his recent loss to Mike Brown, is still a very marketable and dangerous fighter.
A rivalry between these two stars could do for the lighter weight divisions what the rivalry between Couture and Liddell did for the meteoric growth of the UFC. Torres commented on the potential matchup in recent interview with Five Ounces of Pain:
“I know me and Faber are going to fight in the future, it’s going to have to happen. The people would love to see it. I would love to do it. I know that he would too. It’s just a matter of the motivation of the paycheck. The WEC has the two best fighters at 135 and 145. They’re not going to want to put a superfight together for a while. They’re going to let me dominate my weight class and let (Faber) do his thing.”
In boxing, people tend to gravitate toward the heavier weight classes for its display of punching power and to mid-range divisions for its combination of speed and striking. The smaller divisions, like bantamweight, tend to get overlooked- at least in the United States.
Perhaps, in mixed martial arts, there might be an exception. The combination of diverse fighting modalities in the sport make the fights at smaller divisions just as exciting as the bigger ones, if not more so. That is especially the case when you have fighters like Torres and Faber present.
There is one thing that casual fans of Torres may not realize about his stellar 34-1 record. While Torres built his astounding record starting with fights on local shows in the Midwest more than 10 years ago, his record is even more remarkable when you learn that Torres owns another 12 unaccounted-for victories. Torres claims his record stands at 46-1.
"I started fighting way before there were databases," Torres said. "When I first started fighting, I was getting out of high school going into my first year of college. I was working at a grocery store as a store manager. ... There were these events that they had. They were in bars. You had to be 21 to compete. If you were 18, you had to get consent from your folks."
His “folks” finally relented and the rest has been recorded—at least most of his fights that is. To read more about Torres’s “fight road” less traveled click here (after reading this article of course).
So on Dec. 3, when Torres defends his WEC bantamweight title for a third time, you should be tuned in to the VERSUS channel. Contact your cable company to find out if you have the channel—it will clearly be worth your time.
There is nothing better than free MMA, especially when you get the chance to see a fighter like Miguel Torres do what he seems born to do.
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This article was originally published at Inside Fights. Brian Oswald is a new staff writer for the website. He thanks you for your continued support.
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about 1 month ago
nice article b....
Miguel Torres fought in tough man contests at a sports bar in Indiana when he was 18..hundreds of people would come and watch the scrappy little Latino kid knock out guys fifty pounds heavier than him..I like the lighter divisions ..less emphasis on defense..better action..my opinion..faster punchers ..and quicker reflexes..no reason why Torres cant be mentioned with names like Fedor and Anderson Silva..Torrez is 34-1 and has beat everyone he faced in the last five years../STOKER
from about 1 month ago
Would you like to see him move up to 145?
about 1 month ago
Torres is one of the best and most underrated fighters in the world. He is one of the best pound for pound fighters in the world and has a lot to due with the rising popularity of the smaller weight divisions.
With a little luck, and interview will be forthcoming...
from about 1 month ago
Your going to snag an interview with him?
from about 1 month ago
Except for your last sentence, you took the words right out of my mouth.
from about 1 month ago
Dorthy, do you see Torres moving up to 145 in 2009?
about 1 month ago
Great article, Miguel's been one of my favorite fighters since I saw him completely outclass Chase Beebe on the ground in one of the coolest displays of BJJ I've ever seen. It was almost as cool as Hazlette's over-the-top flying armbar. He works hard, he's incredibly skilled, he's a very classy person, he's exactly the kind of fighter that we need promoting the sport.
from about 1 month ago
Hey thanks for the comment Shaun. That was quite a move agaisnt Beebe. What do you think for Miguel's future- do you see him moving up to featherweight and either getting a superfight with Faber and/or challenging for the FW belt?
from about 1 month ago
I think he'll eventually fight Faber, I'm just not sure when. The key to his future might be whether or not there's enough quality opponents at 135 to step up. Doesn't look like too much of a problem just yet, the bantamweight division is the largest one in the WEC, but a similar situation to what happened to Faber might occur, and the WEC will have to keep looking for new fighters to bring in to fight him.
Personally, I'd like to see him stay at 135. He fights well there (great blend of speed and power, no need to disrupt the equilibrium), and a name like him can encourage smaller fighters to pursue a professional fighting career. You made a great comparison to boxing, it would be nice to escape that fate and have almost equal interest across the spectrum, the sport definitely allows for it.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for the compliment Shaun. You make a good point on him staying on 135. And I hope your right about him helping to attract more attention to the smaller divisions- the fights there really are great!
from about 1 month ago
NO...actually i was referring to the boxing article...800 reads in 24 hours..I thought that was pretty good for a boxing article..you never know how boxing is gonna do..one day it looks dead in the water ..next day a resurgence..lol..keep up the great writing B!!
/your old buddy stoker..lol
about 1 month ago
This kid is a superstar, and I love the fac that when he gets in the ring, he brings his family with him. Hes a class act, and a superior athlete deserving of more credit than he may get from the masses. It only takes watching one fight for him to snag an enthusiasts interest. Ill be rooting for him, his succes, and hopefully for him to get the recognition he has earned. This kid exemplifies the term, its not the size of the dog in the fight its the size of the fight in the dog. I contemplated doing an article about him with that as the title, but youve covered everything of relevance quite well, as always. Take care Brian, if turkey day is in the cards for you enjoy, if not hopefully you at least get a day off. Later bro.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for the comment Todd. I am glad to see everyone giving so much love to Mr. Torres. Cant wait to see him fight Dec 3rd. I would have liked to see your article on him Todd. You have a way of weaving the facts into a good story. I am definitely going to enjoy turkey day- going out to Long Island for a four day weekend. I hope I dont miss too much on BR while I am gone! Enjoy the holidays my friend.
about 1 month ago
Torres is great. I really didn't know too much about him besides he was a top contender to the BW title until the Beebe fight. I'd just seen Beebe win the title convincingly and I thought he'd woop on Torres too. The complete opposite happened and I'd found a new guy to keep a close eye on.
Another good article Brian.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks Jeff. I hope you tune in to VERSUS December 3rd! What our your thoughts on a Faber/Torres fight?
from about 1 month ago
It'd be a great fight. I gotta go with Faber winning but Torres has a great record against the wrestler model. We'll see how Faber deals with this first round KO.
from about 1 month ago
I guess you heard Faber vs. Jens 2 is happening. I guess they will throw Garcia at Brown. Winner vs Winner. I vote Faber vs Brown 2 on a WEC PPV (they are wanting to do their first).
from about 1 month ago
I definitely need to see a rematch so that'd be cool. I actually like the PPV better than the free stuff because then me and all my buddies get together to watch it, where as the free stuff we just watch at home by ourselves.
from about 1 month ago
Yeah I know what you mean. Also the WEC PPV wouldn't be the 45 bucks the UFC charges. I think I have heard 20 or 25 bucks.
about 1 month ago
Torres is one of the best fighters in the world and I can't wait for him to start moving up in weight classes. With his frame size, he could very easily get up to 155 and be a legit threat to anyone in the UFC's lightweight division. Could you imagine a Torres-KenFlo fight? What a striking battle that would be!!!
from about 1 month ago
I think you're giving him a little too much credit at this point. Let's wait to see him win 2-3 more fights defending his title at 135 before he even moves up to 145 for even a single fight.
from about 1 month ago
I agree. While Torres is great adding 20lbs to go up to the very talented LW division is a huge move. Adding 20lbs would be adding 15% to his body weight. That would be like GSP almost going up to LHW. Torres has a lot of advantages at 135 that he would lose at 155. I think if he wins this fight and his next the WEC & Joe Silva, who know does their matchmaking as well, will start thinking about Torres vs Faber for a 2009 WEC PPV.
from about 1 month ago
I'm not saying that Torres should jump right up to 155 after his Tapia fight. There are still a couple great fights left for him at 135 and 145. But he's still young enough that even holding off on a move for 2 years gives him the time to still be a top level fighter at 155.
from about 1 month ago
I see your point Jesse and I do agree- the sky is the limit for Torres!
about 1 month ago
While I definitely have some love for Miguel Torres, theres no way he cracks my top 25 of "Guys I'd Pay to See".
The guy is immensely skilled and is clearly a scrapper. But 135 lbs ... how do I say it ... every time I watch bantams I can't help but think "these guys are too small to hurt each other." Maybe I've just watched too many crappy boxing matches between guys weighing a combined 215 pounds.
Awesome article though, Brian! As always.
In case you didn't read it, Part Four has been up for awhile. I'd love to hear your thoughts!
from about 1 month ago
Ha, I know what you mean Marcus (about them being too small to hurt each other). Its a good thing he is fighting for free on the WEC - hope you get the channel. I thought I caught Part Four...clicking on your avatar now! Thanks for the comment as always.
about 1 month ago
I'm excited to see him fight Tapia Wednesday night but I think Torres is going to be too much for him.
Torres may or may not move up to 145 but Faber could certainly move down to 135 (did we cover this before?) Torres is tall and lean, imagine how hard he could hit with another 10lbs of muscle on him... ouch.
from about 1 month ago
Thanks for the pick Nate! We did cover this before somewhere. You kind of make a good argument for Torres moving up to 145, with the additional 10lbs he could hit very hard and probably wouldn't lose too much speed.
about 1 month ago
Forward roll axe kick that almost lands. Spinning backfist that does land. Torres always makes his fights interesting. Dude drops moves that you would only think could work in a video game.
from about 1 month ago
I loved it. It looks like he will be facing Brian Bowles next. What do you think about that matchup? Bowles looked solid in the stand up game and ground game. Might be a little early in his career to beat Torres though.
from about 1 month ago
I like Bowles and think he has an excellent future in the sport but he gets eaten alive 99 times out of 100 against Torres. Torres is a better striker, better on the ground, and has veteran craftiness even though he's still relatively young. I'll be seriously surprised if Torres doesn't fight Faber this year. Theres just nobody at 135 that offers a real challenge to him.
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