Tag: Miguel Torres

MMA Top 10 Bantamweights: Mighty Mouse Makes a Move

Filed under: UFC, Rankings, BantamweightsDemetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson is the next big thing in the bantamweight division in mixed martial arts. Or maybe the next little thing.

Johnson is small even by bantamweight standards (if the UFC ever adds …

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Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson is the next big thing in the bantamweight division in mixed martial arts. Or maybe the next little thing.

Johnson is small even by bantamweight standards (if the UFC ever adds a 125-pound flyweight class, he’ll probably join it), but he showed once again in his UFC 130 victory over Miguel Torres that he has strong enough wrestling that he can take down bigger opponents, keep them down, and grind out decisions. And Johnson is so quick moving in and out that he has managed to avoid the “boring” label that’s too often fastened to fighters who rely on their wrestling like that.

There’s no telling how far the 24-year-old Johnson can go, but he’s already come a long way: See just how high he is on the bantamweight board below.

(Number in parentheses is the fighter’s rank in the last bantamweight list.)

1. Dominick Cruz (1): The champion is now less than a month away from his long-awaited rematch with Urijah Faber at UFC 132. In that fight, Faber retained the WEC featherweight title and handed Cruz the only loss of his career. This time Cruz is the champion, and the favorite.

2. Urijah Faber (2): Faber beat Cruz handily last time, but the big question is whether he’s as good a fighter now as he was then. The 32-year-old Faber has looked like he’s slowing down in the last couple of years, while the 25-year-old Cruz is still improving. It’s a tough fight to call.

3. Joseph Benavidez (3): His fight with Eddie Wineland in August in Milwaukee will be a good challenge for Benavidez, who is 14-2 in his MMA career, with both losses coming by decision against Cruz.

4. Brian Bowles (4): The Cruz-Faber main event isn’t the only big bantamweight fight at UFC 132: Bowles fights Takeya Mizugaki on the undercard. A Bowles win could set him up for the next shot at the Cruz-Faber winner.

5. Demetrious Johnson (NR): The UFC really ought to give Johnson a pay raise. Earning $6,000 to show and a $6,000 bonus for winning just isn’t enough for a fighter who’s in the Top 5 of his weight class. Johnson isn’t a big draw now, but he looks like a future title contender, and a long-term contract extension would seem to make sense for both the UFC and Johnson.

6. Scott Jorgensen (6): Jorgensen showed off some very impressive ground and pound against Ken Stone at the Ultimate Fighter Finale, with a brutal right hand to Stone’s chin from inside Stone’s guard, knocking him cold. Jorgensen was outclassed by Cruz when they fought for the bantamweight title in December, and I wouldn’t give him much of a chance in a rematch, but he’s a threat to anyone else in the division.

7. Miguel Torres (5): It’s tough to see the way Torres has fallen: He’s lost three of his last five after starting his career 37-1. Torres still has plenty of good fights left in him, but it’s probably not realistic to think he’ll ever get the bantamweight title back.

8. Brad Pickett (NR): Pickett was supposed to fight Torres at UFC 130, but an injury forced him out of the fight and Johnson took his spot. Pickett beat Johnson in April of 2010, and you could make an argument that he deserves to be ranked higher than Johnson because of that, but I have Johnson ahead of Pickett based on how much Johnson looks like he’s improved in the last 14 months.

9. Eddie Wineland (8): Wineland lost to Faber in March but gave him a much tougher fight than most people expected, and now he’s got a big fight with Benavidez in August. Wineland has been around a long time (he was the first WEC featherweight champion), and sometimes that makes people forget that he’s only 26 years old and is still getting better.

10. Renan Barão (9): Barao’s unanimous decision victory over Cole Escovedo at UFC 130 runs his incredible streak to 26 straight wins (with one no contest mixed in). It’s time to see how Barao does against Top 10 competition.

 

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UFC 130 Results: Miguel Torres and Demetrious Johnson Put on an Absolute Show

People often knock the ground aspect of mixed martial arts, but there have been some rather outstanding collisions in our sport that have led to phenomenal clinics on the ground.The fans may have preferred the fight to stay standing, but there have bee…

People often knock the ground aspect of mixed martial arts, but there have been some rather outstanding collisions in our sport that have led to phenomenal clinics on the ground.

The fans may have preferred the fight to stay standing, but there have been times when the crowd saw a Fight of the Night contender in a bout that spent more time on the ground that it did in the heat of a slugfest.

Miguel Angel Torres did not defeat Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson at UFC 130, but the now 39-4 former WEC bantamweight king and the now 10-1 perennial favorite for an inaugural top five of a potential UFC flyweight division were both involved in one of of the best 15-minute ground clinics in the most recent historical archives of mainstream mixed martial arts.

Those who predicted this to be a “Fight of the Night” candidate were not disappointed.

They were the ones that knew from the onset that despite the obvious takedown advantage Johnson had, a ground-based fight did not translate 100 percent into a one-sided fight in Johnson’s favor, just as they knew that Torres would not be at a full advantage against the ever-improving Mighty Mouse if the fight remained vertical and saw an exchange of fisticuffs.

Fans wrapped themselves up in the fact of Torres’ two losses in the WEC—to Brian Bowles and Joseph Benavidez—that they chose to conveniently forget about how sound the submission arsenal of the lanky Torres is, especially when Torres is on his back.

Torres did take some serious ground and pound from Johnson, but the story of the fight was only partially the improvements in Johnson’s striking and the always dominating wrestling game which, to Johnson’s credit, was effective inside Torres’ guard.

The other part of the story behind this bout was the Jiu-Jitsu exhibition that Torres put on this past Saturday, attempting submission attempt after submission attempt on Johnson and staying completely active from any and every position he was put in.

If you watch the fight again, Torres’ performance is the reason why many label this as a “controversial” unanimous decision win for Johnson, as the performance hardly justified the argument for Johnson’s win being “unanimous.”

If anything, the win should have been a split decision as the fight was one that argued as much a case for Torres as it did for Johnson.

Still, if you missed the Torres-Johnson bout in any way, shape or form, you may have missed what may be considered among the best pure examples of an electrifying ground clinic in mixed martial arts.

The bout just further proved what we all knew when the UFC and WEC merged:

When it comes to the lighter weights, there’s no such thing as a boring fight.

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Falling Action: Best and Worst of UFC 130

Filed under: UFCPerhaps the best thing we can say about UFC 130 is that it’s over. It started out as the event that would finally put the Frankie Edgar-Gray Maynard saga to rest, and it ended up with “Rampage” Jackson in a main event bout that even he …

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Perhaps the best thing we can say about UFC 130 is that it’s over. It started out as the event that would finally put the Frankie Edgar-Gray Maynard saga to rest, and it ended up with “Rampage” Jackson in a main event bout that even he wasn’t terribly excited about.

But now that the dust has settled and the Octagon has been packed away one more time, let’s look back over Saturday night’s action to see whose stock soared and whose plummeted into the basement of the MGM Grand.

In the wake of UFC 130, here are your biggest winners, losers, and everything in between.

Biggest Winner: Brian Stann
Sure, it makes for a great storyline to see the former Marine beat somebody up on Memorial Day weekend, but forget that for a minute. Stann took on the Sengoku middleweight champ in a fight that was supposed to be a serious test of his skills, and he practically breezed through it with the perfect mix of poise and aggression. He didn’t lose his cool when he had Santiago hurt early. He didn’t lay back too much and let good opportunities slip by. He did exactly what he needed to do, and he got perhaps the biggest win of his career. He also pocketed a Fight of the Night bonus, which is a nice way of reminding everyone that you were one of the few bright spots on an otherwise forgettable fight card. Plus, $70,000 buys a lot of hot dogs and apple pie.

Biggest Loser: Roy Nelson
There’s no questioning his toughness or his ability to take a shot. But his cardio? That’s a different story. You never want to end a round by immediately doubling over and putting your hands on your knees like an out-of-shape businessman who was forced to take the stairs for the first time in ten years. Let’s just say it sends the wrong message. Nelson got overpowered and outworked by Frank Mir, but the worst part is that by the end he just seemed grateful to get out of there and go home. We’ve seen him go the distance before without looking like he needed to have a defibrillator handy in his corner, so I’m not sure what accounts for this poor showing. Whatever it is, he’d better figure it out quick. The UFC seems less inclined to give Nelson the benefit of the doubt that it has extended to others.

Least Compelling Case for a Title Shot: “Rampage” Jackson
The hard part about fighting a guy who the current champ already demolished is that it provides an unavoidable counter-example that your performance will be measured against. Everyone will recall that Jon Jones straight-up assaulted Hamill, while Jackson carried him the distance. Not that the fight was close, mind you. Jackson stuffed all Hamill’s takedowns and put some leather on his face whenever he felt like it. Trouble is, he didn’t feel like it quite enough down the stretch. He’d explode with a combo, wait to see if Hamill was still standing, then catch his breath before trying it again. It’s a competent showing, sure, but not the kind that screams out for a shot at the belt. Jackson is undoubtedly one of the best light heavyweights around, but that means people are going to expect more out of him than what he showed on Saturday night. Whether he has any interest in giving it to them remains to be seen.

Most Impressive in Defeat: Miguel Torres
If nothing else, Torres proved once and for all that you just can’t win a decision off your back in MMA. If it was at all possible, he would have done it on Saturday night with his many, varied attempts at a finish against an opponent who was content to hold on and maintain top position. You could argue that a takedown is an effective way of controlling the fight and dictating the action, so Demetrious Johnson won it fair and square – and you’d probably be right. At the same time, it was Torres doing most of the work to actually end the fight and/or make something interesting happen. It didn’t get him the victory, but it does get him a tip of the cap, for whatever that’s worth.

Least Impressive in Victory: Frank Mir
We know “Big Country” is tough to put away. The Junior dos Santos fight proved that much. But it never looks good when you have an opponent who is almost too exhausted to stand and you let him hang around for the full three rounds with his tongue practically hanging out of his mouth. At times it seems like Mir takes an unfair amount of criticism, particularly from Dana White. But then you stop and ask yourself, even after two straight wins over two name heavyweights, would I really want to see Mir anywhere near a title fight? Not unless he bought a ticket.

Most Surprising: Rick Story
With a decision win over Thiago Alves in the UFC, Story joins a very exclusive club with some strict membership requirements. He did it with a game plan that played brilliantly to his own strengths while taking Alves’ mostly out of the equation, and he also proved that he can take a punch (or a knee) and keep right on coming. Alves is by far the best fighter Story has ever beaten, and he did it in a fight that really wasn’t even close on the scorecards. That’s six in a row for the young welterweight. He keeps this up, and things will get serious in his career very quickly.

Most Memorable: Travis Browne‘s KO
Whenever the 6’11” Struve gets knocked out it always makes for instant highlight reel material. Like a building being imploded, his collapse to the mat looks so awkward and takes so long that it makes a lasting impression on everyone who sees it. That’s bad news for Struve, but great news for Browne, who put himself on the map with a perfectly timed Superman punch. Even if he never does anything else with his MMA career, that knockout will live on in highlight packages for years. It should also instantly erase the bitter memory of Browne’s unimpressive draw with Cheick Kongo at UFC 120. Nothing like a crushing knockout to resurrect your reputation. Now let’s see what he can do with it.

Least Likely to Remain Employed: Kendall Grove
The decision loss to Boetsch marked his third defeat in four attempts. What’s worse, he was never really in the fight. It was takedown, top control, scramble to the feet, then rinse and repeat all night long. By the third round, everyone knew what Boetsch was going to do, yet Grove couldn’t even come close to stopping it. It made for a pretty boring fight, which didn’t do Boetsch any favors, but the only thing worse than winning a fight in that fashion is losing one the same way. Grove is now 7-6 in his UFC career. Most of the fighters he beat recently were later cut from the UFC, which tells you something. He’s been hovering over the chopping block for a while now. My guess is the ax is about to come down.

 

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UFC 130 Aftermath: Worst Audition Ever


(Photo courtesy of UFC.com. Rampage’s victory reaction gif is now after the jump.)

When the anticipated rematch between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard was scrapped from this card, we were left with a few big names and a lot of hope. Despite a few stellar knockouts earlier in the evening, UFC 130 ended much like my date to see “No Strings Attached”: a lot of booing, a disappointing 15 minute fight, and I was out $50.

Every UFC card has to be about something, and with no gold up for grabs the storyline for this event became Quinton Jackson’s climb back up to the top of the Light Heavyweight division. Dana White declared and Rogan and Goldberg echoed that an impressive, entertaining victory over Matt Hamill would land Rampage a title fight with champ Jon Jones. Rampage secured the win, but his shot at the belt is still up in the air.


(Photo courtesy of UFC.com. Rampage’s victory reaction gif is now after the jump.)

When the anticipated rematch between Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard was scrapped from this card, we were left with a few big names and a lot of hope. Despite a few stellar knockouts earlier in the evening, UFC 130 ended much like my date to see “No Strings Attached”: a lot of booing, a disappointing 15 minute fight, and I was out $50.

Every UFC card has to be about something, and with no gold up for grabs the storyline for this event became Quinton Jackson’s climb back up to the top of the Light Heavyweight division. Dana White declared and Rogan and Goldberg echoed that an impressive, entertaining victory over Matt Hamill would land Rampage a title fight with champ Jon Jones. Rampage secured the win, but his shot at the belt is still up in the air.


(“Hold up…you mean ya’ll were watching that shit???”)

Coming off of a semi-contested and equally boring win over Lyoto Machida, Rampage’s performance last night was meant to be more than a notch in the win column. If all went according to plan, it would have provided the UFC with the type of highlight-reel footage Jackson hasn’t produced since his knock out victory over Wanderlei Silva in 2008 and had fans clamoring for a fight against Jon “Bones” Jones. But last night’s fight yielded few fireworks if any. Hamill’s mantra in the lead-up to the bout was that he would break Jackson’s will, but only a few minutes into the bout it was “The Hammer” who looked like he’d rather be anywhere than in that cage. Going 0-17 in his plodding, telegraphed takedown attempts, Hamill was unable to get the fight to the ground and understandably reluctant to stand and trade with Rampage. As for Jackson, he did deviate slightly from his hands-heavy style–incorporating knees, elbows, and even a few token kicks into his attack–but he didn’t initiate or go in for the kill against a clearly gun-shy Hamill. After the fight, Jackson put some of the blame on a fractured hand he injured back in December of last year. [Note to Quinton: we believe you and all, but you’re not supposed to talk about that kind of stuff, bruh.] . Despite the lackluster performance, Dana White has stated that pending the positive outcome of tests on Rampage’s hand, he will likely be the first challenger to Jones’s belt.

If there were any questions about Frank Mir’s place in the heavyweight division following his first-round loss to Shane Carwin and coma-inducing win over faded star Mirko Cro Cop, they remain completely unanswered. His one-sided victory over the obese Roy Nelson says less about his dedication to training than it does “Big Country’s” lack of it. The time has come to call the “Big Country” experiment a flop. The myth of his terrific cardio has been dispelled in consecutive losses to Dos Santos and Mir, where he served as a very exhausted, very durable durable punching bag for the full three rounds. The dude has a terrific chin—did he even blink when he ate those crushing elbows late in round three?–but the notion that he can walk into the Octagon with Cheeto fingers and compete with the top of the division is absurd. Fatigue reduced his vaunted ground game to rolling to his ample belly and working his way to his feet; it’s an impressive trick even without Frank Mir on top of him, but it’s not enough to compete at this level. Mir looked good taking Nelson down at will and landing some heavy shots, but it’s fair to say that “Big Country” was looking for the path of least resistance throughout the fight, even if it meant getting smashed in the face or tossed to the mat. Despite his lethargic performance, Nelson does possess power in his hands- Mir left the Octagon with a broken jaw and rib to accompany his win bonus.

As for the rest of the card, they did their part to entertain and it’s a shame that their work was soured by the last thirty minutes of cage-time. Brian Stann opened the night with big knockout over the returning Jorge Santiago in the “Fight of the Night”. UFC heavyweight Travis Browne secured his spot on a future ‘Ultimate Knockouts’ dvd by felling mighty oak Stefan Struve in spectacular fashion. Demetrius “Mighty Mouse” Johnson won a tough-to-call decision over Miguel Torres in a hyper-active fight contested largely on the ground. Top Welterweight Thiago Alves was given no room to work against Rick Story. Story kept constant pressure on Thiago, pressing him to the cage and working for takedowns. His decision victory marks his sixth straight win in the UFC. Tim Boetsch looked dominant in his first fight at Middleweight, rag-dolling Kendall Grove in a one-sided decision. This was Da Spyder’s second consecutive loss and his third in four outings. Late replacement Rafaello Oliveira was overpowered by Lightweight juggernaut Gleison Tibau. Tibau’s second round ground and pound forced Oliveira to surrender his back and tap out to a rear naked choke in the evening’s only submission.

Full results of the night (via: MMAWeekly.com)

UFC 130 Main Bouts (On Pay-Per-View):

-Quinton “Rampage” Jackson defeats Matt Hamill via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)

-Frank Mir defeats Roy Nelson by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-26)

-Travis Browne defeats Stefan Struve via KO at 4:11 of the first round.

-Rick Story defeats Thiago Alves via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)

-Brian Stann defeats Jorge Santiago via TKO at 4:29 or round two.

UFC 130 Preliminary Bouts (On Spike TV):

-Demetrious Johnson defeats Miguel Torres via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)

-Tim Boetsch defeats Kendall Grove via unanimous decision (30-27 x3)

UFC 130 Preliminary Bouts (On Facebook):

-Gleison Tibau defeats Rafaello via submission (rear naked choke) at 3:28 of round two

-Michael McDonald defeats Chris Cariaso via split decision (27-30, 29-28, 29-28)

-Renan Barao defeats Cole Escovedo by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Demetrious Johnson on Why He Deserved to Beat Miguel Torres

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Demetrious JohnsonLAS VEGAS – MMA Fighting caught up with UFC bantamweight Demetrious Johnson after his close decision win over Miguel Torres at UFC 130. ‘Mighty Mouse’ explained why he thought he defeated the former WEC champion, which rounds he won and how he battled through an injury.

Check out the exclusive interview after the jump.

 

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Demetrious JohnsonLAS VEGAS – MMA Fighting caught up with UFC bantamweight Demetrious Johnson after his close decision win over Miguel Torres at UFC 130. ‘Mighty Mouse’ explained why he thought he defeated the former WEC champion, which rounds he won and how he battled through an injury.

Check out the exclusive interview after the jump.

 

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UFC 130: Is Miguel Torres One of the Most Underappreciated Fighters Ever?

One of the most skilled fighters to come out of the UFC and WEC merger, Miguel Torres was on a roll in his early days with the WEC.Defending his bantamweight championship belt three times, Torres was one of the most highly touted fighters in the lower …

One of the most skilled fighters to come out of the UFC and WEC merger, Miguel Torres was on a roll in his early days with the WEC.

Defending his bantamweight championship belt three times, Torres was one of the most highly touted fighters in the lower weight class divisions.

Enter Brian Bowles.

Looking to defend his title for a fourth time, Torres failed, knocked out by Bowles in the first round.

The jiu-jitsu ace didn’t rebound well either, tapping out to Joseph Benavidez last March.

The once highly praised Torres now seemed to be pushed to the back of everyone’s minds.  How could opinion of his skill change that quickly?

Unfortunately forgotten by the fickle fans, Torres quietly bounced back, slowly accumulating two consecutive wins coming into tonight’s fight with Demetrious Johnson.

Lost in all the talk of Urijah Faber versus Dominick Cruz, the former WEC champion is looking to fly back onto everyone’s radar and enter title contention.

Let’s not forget, Torres was one of the most dominant champions while in the WEC, defeating the likes of Japanese superstar Takeya Mizugaki and Pride veteran Yoshiro Maeda.

A win over “Mighty Mouse” will definitely bring Torres more attention as he looks to plow through the UFC’s newly added bantamweight division.

If the former champion can keep up his winning ways, look for him to fight for the belt real soon.

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