What I Learned from WEC 47

WEC 47 was bittersweet and poignant, suspenseful and anticlimactic.  I was reminded was reminded that styles are what make fights, and I learned that a perceived advantage means nothing when push comes to shove.

Fans of former bantamweight champion Miguel Torres were eager to see the lanky East Chicago brawler return to form and earn a shot at rematching the man who clobbered him senseless, Brian Bowles.  

Standing in the way, however, was up-and-comer Joseph Benavidez, a compact powerhouse who left no question that he'd done his homework.  Towering over his smaller opponent, Torres was expected to give Benavidez fits with his reach, but Benavidez had no trouble getting inside.  He easily danced away from most of Torres' wicked jabs, negating the former champion's 12" reach advantage, and scored easy takedowns with superior speed and quickness.  Benavidez' compact physicality seemed to make it difficult for Torres to mount any submission attempts from the bottom position, and spent most of the time on his back scrambling to his feet or trying to avoid damage, which eventually came in the form of an elbow.  Bloodied and overwhelmed, the emotional Torres charged Benavidez only to get caught in an iron choke, where he tapped out.

Hindsight being 20/20, it was a matchup that favored Benavidez.  Torres, a notoriously emotional fighter with a haphazard style that gets him banged up, was coming off not just a loss but a vicious first-round knockout.  Combined with his tendency to perhaps over-train, the emotional intangibles were against him.  Stylistically, we've never seen Torres do real well against quicker and more compact fighters with superior strength and wrestling.  His submission skills proved useless against an opponent who, for practical purposes, didn't have long enough arms to even arm bar.

In the main event, Brian Bowles faced challenger Dominic Cruz, a former featherweight undefeated at 135lbs.  Cruz' elusive but effective "monkey on meth" offense confused the audience, the camera operators, and most of all his opponent.  Bowles, who apparently broke his hand on the first punch, wasn't able to establish any rhythm against Cruz.  After not answering the bell for round 3, Cruz was given the TKO.  

An unsatisfying victory because of the injury, but that notwithstanding, Cruz' footwork, counter-punching and incredible timing combined with excellent wrestling were likely going to overwhelm Bowles anyway.  His game plan and execution were a lot to overcome, broken hand or not.

Cruz looks now to defend against Benavidez, whom he defeated via decision on his way to the belt.

The WEC is replete with sub-lightweight talent, and styles as a factor in the outcome of any given matchup seem to be amplified at these lighter weights.  Something about the speed, the power-to-weight ratios...I'm sure there's a calculus function that describes the relationship.  Anyway pretty exciting stuff to watch.

Let's hope Miguel gets back on track.  Anymore he may be at a distinct disadvantage at bantamweight, with his lanky physique and brawling style.  Cruz, Benavidez and Bowles have enough talent between them to keep Torres away from the 135-lb belt.

Brian Bowles Didn't Get the Memo

Didn't you get the memo, Brian Bowles? No one will ever beat Miguel Torres.

Tonight, I watched one of my favorite fighters get knocked out cold. Torres, former WEC bantamweight champion and widely considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, was knocked out cold in the first round by undefeated challenger and new WEC bantamweight champion Brian Bowles. And this was no fluke flurry TKO; it was a stone-cold beat-down.

Widely considered one of best in the world, Torres was heavily favored and expected to either submit Bowles with his world-class jiu-jitsu skills or end the fight with wicked striking delivered from a significant reach advantage. Riding a seventeen-fight winning streak, the champ Torres had just months earlier battled the iron-jawed and iron-fisted Takeya Mizugaki to a decision victory. Mizugaki proved surprisingly tough for Torres, whom fans had become accustomed to seeing blow through ostensibly dangerous challengers like wet toilet paper. Brian Bowles had shown promise in his seven professional fights, but most probably expected the far more experienced Torres to deliver a foregone conclusion victory.

I guess Brian Bowles didn't get the memo.

I thought Miguel Torres would never be beaten, let alone get brutally knocked unconcious. Bowles, who back-tracked most of the fight, was the first one to land and when he landed, he landed a hard overhand. That shot, which sent Torres stumbling while he recovered, probably served as a wake-up call for the champ, whothen turned on the heat. Torres charged the backpedaling challenger Bowles, perhaps over-aggressively. Bowles patiently weathered the flurry and then delivered a devastating hook that deflated Torres. Bowles pounced and pounded the dazed Torres, and a few head-bouncers later, the ref ended it. It really made me sick to see one of my favorite fighters not only get beaten, but get beaten unequivocally; his body limp like a rag doll; eyes glazed and expression blank.

When I got over the sickening disappointment (which took me a couple hours) I was able to appreciate the significance of an individual mixed martial arts match as a metaphor for life.

Prior to this fight, I'd seen Torres make predictions about this fight's outcome that, while containing the typical requisite fight promo trash talk, struck me as uncharacteristic. Champions are champions because they have their heads in the right place, and don't waste time playing mind games, right? Maybe not. Torres went out of his way in recent weeks to try and get in Bowles' head in an attempt to build a psychological edge over a younger, less-experienced fighter. So many had lost to Torres before setting foot in the cage, their resolve buckling under the weight of his legend.

One of Torres' pre-fight remarks in particular was so presumptuous and demonstrated such complacency, it practically telegraphed an upset:

“I’ve been through so many fights, I’ve been in this situation so many times,” he said. “I’m like a Vampire and every time I fight I feed off of my wars and that makes me a stronger fighter. After my last fight with Mizugaki my confidence has been bolstered by 10 times what it was before because I know that I’m not going to get knocked out, that I’m not going to get hurt, that I can go five rounds hard and I’m not going to get tired.

Again...it looks like Brian Bowles didn't get the memo.

Two years ago I experienced this same sickening disappointment while watching UFC welterweight champ George St. Pierre tap due to strikes after getting too close to Matt Serra. Serra, a 10-to-1 underdog, hadn't bought the hype about St. Pierre and assumed it was OK to go ahead and try to knock out the champ. Lo and behold...

The loss changed George St. Pierre and improved him immeasurably. St. Pierre bounced back a more focused, relaxed, happy, and humble fighter, unburdened by petty trash-talk. It's probably no coincidence that he's also now more dominant than ever, having reclaimed his throne and not lost a single round in the six ensuing fights since his upset. These days, fans will hear George speak with a sort of peaceful wisdom about the uncertainty of life, how he cannot nor will not guarantee a victory ever, and how one cannot possibly know the future nor hope to control it. I happen to agree with this, and will elaborate further to point out that the concept of a future - the space in that fourth dimension beyond what we are currently experiencing or have already experienced - has absolutely no meaning if it is something that can be perceived or otherwise foretold. George St. Pierre understands what he can and cannot control.

It mystifies me, then, why another one of the world's greatest MMA champions would demonstrate such a lack of respect for not only his opponent, but for the universe and the cosmos and the awesome power of karma. Miguel Torres is a skilled and accomplished champion, a legend who has already secured a place in history. Well-spoken and articulate, he offers intelligent interviews that demonstrate the profound philosophies of a thinking man's fighter.

What Miguel Torres started, Brian Bowles finished. Is it karma? I believe Torres is the more talented and dynamic fighter, and I am pretty certain that my favorite fighter will bounce back and reclaim his belt, but he may have had this coming. Miguel Torres lost this fight before it even started by abandoning his champion's composure and descending into the garbage-talk sideshow reserved for scrubs. The former champion will surely benefit from facing and being defeated by a worthy challenger who honored both him and the sport by bringing the fight to him. At the end of the day, I am sure Miguel Torres can, as a student of the art of fighting, appreciate Bowles' performance.

I hope to see the old Torres - the one who means business and doesn't have time for bullshit - in the future. Meanwhile, I'll try to let my respect for others and my appreciation for the awesome power of life and the universe guide the things that I do and say.