Torres back on top

UFC 130: Torres makes second UFC appearance

Miguel Angel Torres claims a change in training methods and a new disciplined approach will help him win his second UFC fight when he goes up against Demetrious Johnson at UFC 130.

The former WEC bantamweight king will take on 'Mighty Mouse' Johnson in Las Vegas at UFC 130 - headlined by Rampage Jackson's fight with Matt Hamill.

Torres (38-3) won his UFC debut against Antonio Banuelos in Las Vegas back in February by unanimous decision, but it was a more cautious affair than usual.

Fans gave Torres a hard time after becoming used to his all-action style, but he insists he needed to switch his methods to extend his career.

He insists he feels no extra pressure to put on a gun-slinging show at UFC 130 though, and will be equally as methodical in his game plan against Johnson.

"Whether I'm fighting in the UFC, the WEC or my first fight in my hometown, I never feel any pressure from any fight," said Torres.

Crazy

"I'm training now up at Tristar with Firas Zihabi. You saw in my last fight I was getting booed a lot for not going in and chasing Antonio. The old Miguel Torres would have rushed in and made it a crazy fight.

"But now that I'm training under great trainers and great partners in the gym, I'm more relaxed and I stick to the game plan.

"Whether it pleases the fans or not, the biggest adjustment I've made is knowing what I need to do to win. I'm no longer going to let my emotions get the better of me and I'm not rushing out and getting caught in any more gunfights."

'Mighty Mouse' Johnson (13-1) could be bringing the heat though as he enters the fight on the back of a three-fight winning streak.

"Demetrious is one of those guys who doesn't have a lot of fights, but he's very, very quick," Torres added. "I'd say he's one of the quickest guys I've ever fought.

"He's a very good wrestler with very good takedowns, and his footwork is very good, so his striking is going to be all over the place. It's like fighting another version of (bantamweight contender) Joseph Benavidez.

"He poses a lot of threats but I have a very good game plan and I've been training really hard for this fight. I'm very confident in my approach to this situation."

Losses

Torres had been enjoying a long winning run in WEC before back-to-back losses to Brian Bowles and Joseph Benavidez exposed his flaws, and he said he needed that wake-up call to help him change his ways and improve.

"It was a matter of time," Torres said. "Whether it was them or somebody else, it was just a matter of time before I got caught up in my little world.

"I was doing well and I was winning my fights with the same training and the same methods, but it was just a matter of time until somebody with a good team deconstructed everything I was doing wrong.

"Those guys both did that and all that did was force me to go to a better team and step my game up. I think the sign of a true champion and a true fighter is to learn from those kinds of fights and go back to the drawing board and fix what you did wrong and make yourself better.

"And until those losses happened I wasn't going to do that. It took that to change not just to be a better fighter but also a better person. So I think those losses made me stronger."