Published Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008 | 5:30 p.m.
Updated Wednesday, Dec. 3, 2008 | 9:30 p.m.
During the entire publicity buildup for his title fight against Manny Tapia, World Extreme Cagefighting bantamweight champ Miguel Torres let the brasher Tapia doing all the trash talking.
On their walk to the Octagon Wednesday night inside The Joint at the Hard Rock, it was Tapia who overshadowed Torres’ Mexican walk-up music with his own mariachi band.
Once inside the cage, after a Tapia blow grazed his ear, Torres refused to let his emotions take over.
He’d already learned that lesson, struggling to put away his last opponent, Yoshiro Maeda, as quickly as he would have liked after his self-admitted angry streak forced mistakes.
And even after he had handed Tapia his first career loss via a second round TKO, Torres sat at the post-fight media conference calmly describing the flaws in his near perfect MMA game.
“Everything can get better. I’m not perfect in anything, I’m human,” said Torres, whose latest title defense stretched his career mark to 35-1.
Oh, and about that lone setback, five years ago to Ryan Ackerman, Torres avenged it with an arm bar submission two years later.
Maybe it’s his play-it-by-the-book personality in the fight game that had his next possible victim (er, opponent) — undefeated Brian Bowles, who improved to 6-0 with his own slick submission of Will Ribeiro Wednesday — singing praises of the champ.
“I think he’s awesome. “Anybody with a record that good is obviously a good fighter,” Bowles said.
Torres, naturally, returned the favor.
“I think Brian proved himself a while back already,” he said. “I’m in the WEC to fight the best fighters in the world.
“I know he doesn’t have a huge record, but from what I’ve seen of him he’s a very honorable opponent, that doesn’t talk any smack, and who is just here to fight. I would love to fight him.”
Torres didn’t seem to mind giving back to the ones who do pipe up either.
“I’m not a big trash talker, I’m about showing what I can do in the ring. When someone calls me out, I’m gonna come and show what I can do,” Torres said with a smile, meant in Tapia's direction.
After a cautious first round by Tapia, who had promised to be on the attack from the opening bell, and a couple of well-timed blows by both fighters, Torres took control in the second stanza.
He knocked Tapia to the canvas a first time with a well-timed hook after he set him up with a series of jabs. Despite a flurry of finishing punches, Tapia escaped.
But the fighter from Chino, Calif. didn’t get far, walking into a big straight right. This time the blur of fists did the trick on the canvas as the fight was stopped at the 3:04 mark of the second round.
“I always thought I had a great chin, I guess not,” said a laughing Tapia, who was wearing both a cowboy hat and an oozing cut over his right eye.
“People are saying he’s pound-for-pound the best. He showed it tonight and I believe it.”
The key for Torres likely keeping the title, is that he doesn’t.
“It’s just a matter of not being cocky or overzealous in what you do, and always wanting to learn,” the East Chicago, Ind. native said.
“Anybody can knock me out or anybody can submit me. Especially now being the champ of the WEC because I have a bulls-eye on my back. A win against me can change somebody’s life.”
But Torres is determined from letting that happen, at least until he’s ready to retire on his terms to the recently opened gym he runs in Hammond, Ind.
“I know they are always training 10 times harder than I am. I always keep that on my mind. There will be times where it’s two in the morning at my house and I tell my wife I have to go running. I’m always preoccupied with what they’re (opponent) doing.”
Torres chuckled, making sure his wife, Michelle Panettiere, was a little farther out of earshot, before finishing his thought.
“She thinks I’m going out somewhere else, then I come home covered with stink and sweat.”
Main Card Results
Wagnney Fabiano vs. Akitoshi Tamura
Another successful WEC debut. Fabiano, of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, did what he does best just as the clock was about to expire in Round No. 3 — forcing Tamura to tap because of a choke hold.
After a cautious first round of feeling out his opponent, Fabiano gained control several times in the second. After a long stalemate between the two fighters, Fabiano realized he needed to be more aggressive, which he did throughout the third, forcing the action and then the eventual tap.
Brian Bowles vs. Will Ribeiro
Much like Benavidez did minutes earlier, Bowles kept his perfect MMA record intact, with a third round victory over Ribeiro via a guillotine choke.
“The guillotine is my go-to move in the gym. I think I’ve earned a title shot. I’d love to fight the winner of tonight's fight," said Bowles, who stretched his record to 7-0 and later earned a $7,500 bonus for "Submission of the Night."
Joseph Benavidez vs. Danny Martinez
Benavidez rolls his MMA record to a perfect 9-0, recording a win in his WEC debut with a unanimous decision when all three judges scored the bout 30-27.
Undercard Results
Justin Haskins vs. Johny Hendricks
Hendricks, one of three former Oklahoma State wrestlers on tonight's card, overwhelmed Haskins in the second stanza — ending the match with a flurry of punches in the first minute of the round.
Ricardo Barros vs. Mark Munoz
Munoz ended this one early with a series of hammer shots to the head in the first round. Munoz is the last light heavy to compete in the WEC as the company is reorganizing to feature only the lower weight classes.
Diego Nunes vs. Cole Province
Nunes scores a UD with scores of 30-27 (twice) and 29-28. But the match was arguably a lot closer.
Alex Karalexis vs. Bart Palaszewski
Palaszewski was victorious via a second-round TKO, which garnered him "Knockout of the Night."
Cub Swanson vs. Hiroyuki Takaya
Swanson scores a three-round unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28. The match took "Fight of the Night" honors.
Shane Roller vs. Mike Budnik
Roller gets a win by guillotine, forcing Budnik to tap at 1:01 in the first.
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