Ronnys Torres Impressed at UFC 109 Loss to Melvin Guillard
by Kid Nate on Feb 9, 2010 9:20 AM EST
in MMA News
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Kelvin Hunt makes the case:
he exhibited some good attributes in the octagon. He ate several big knees from Guillard like they were cotton candy, and fought at a very high pace, almost relentless at times for the take down. He was able to get Guillard down several times as well which is no small task as Guillard has pretty good take down defense with his wrestling background. He is known to be well versed in submissions. He's only gone to a decision 3 times in 16 career fights with 12 finishes to his credit. Even with the loss, I think Torres is a good addition to the division and he may be able to make some noise provided he gets that cardio issue worked out.
Hunt attributes Torres' loss to cardio deficiencies stemming from a huge weight cut before the fight.
I have to concur with Kelvin that Torres is a fine addition to the UFC's lightweight division. What I saw was a big, powerful lightweight with incredible wrestling and excellent jiu jitsu positional control who was able to seize the initiative standing against a top notch boxer in Guillard. Torres lost the fight on his feet, but he never looked overmatched.
Unfortunately for Torres he was fighting an incredible athlete in Melvin Guillard -- a man Bloody Elbow boxing guru Brent Brookhouse believes could hang with B.J. Penn in a straight boxing match -- who is newly rejuvenated from training at a top-flight camp for the first time.
There is no shame in going to a three round decision against Melvin Guillard, especially a clean and sober Guillard who is benefitting from Greg Jackson's Yoda magic. And dominating Guillard for most of two rounds is an achievement any lightweight should take pride in.
But MMA ain't horseshoes or hand grenades and close don't cut it. It takes wins to stay in the UFC.
Torres should recover from this loss and rack up a few especially if he is allowed a tune up fight against someone with comparable UFC experience.
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Agreed
Torres looked damn sharp to me, and I wouldn’t have been upset if the decision had went his way.
certified warlord
Definately
I thought he was going to get the nod. Not too upset as Melvin landed those huge knees but since Torres shrugged them off so well I wasn’t sure if they would have counted too much compared to the takedowns.
The Kid hadn’t fought in almost 2 years too so ring rust would not have helped.
Can’t wait to see him fight again! He made a fan out of me.
'He built his whole reputation as a waffle house chef. They’ve been serving him up ham and eggs with a side of canned tomatoes' - Don Frye on Fedor Emelianenko
by Well Read Idiot on Feb 9, 2010 9:06 AM EST up reply actions
Melvin Guillard has good takedown defense? I seem to recall him being put on the mat more than once by Nate Diaz of all people.
He has okay Takedown Defense...
but after being taken down he is very good at getting back to his feet… I recall him getting subbed in quick exchanges such as diving into guillotines as opposed to getting subbed off of his back… I could be forgetting fights tho…
I'm like PacMan fightin you silly kids... throw ya Hatton the ring, and get knocked outlike Ricky did.
lol.
melvin's sprawl isn't that great
largely because he’s looking to land punches standing, but he’s really gotten good at getting back to his feet once taken down.
Follow me on Twitter @KidNate
That’s true. Hunt was saying it’s an accomplishment to get him down. No, it’s an accomplishment to keep him down.
by JRN on Feb 9, 2010 9:47 AM EST up reply actions
Just curious
Who here thought that Torres won the fight? Personally, I thought he won a close decision
I thought Torres won, but it was very close and really came down to the judges interpretation. My decision was probably jaded by my distaste for Guillard, but that is life as a fan.
by ultimatefightsource on Feb 9, 2010 10:52 AM EST up reply actions
I see big things in Torres future.
Pretty sure he’ll be able to overpower most of the lower half of the LW Division.
Walking the line between intelligence and ignorance since 1985
@deowade
Good point.
I hope he doesn’t turn into Herculano #2
Walking the line between intelligence and ignorance since 1985
@deowade
I thought Torres won that fight
Rounds 1 and 3 were fairly clear for Torres. Melvin getting a sweep and landing 2 punches in the last 5 seconds of round 3, shouldn’t have canceled the fact that he spent 3:30 on the round on his back.
" Tell me something Steve, How does a guy from Puerto Rico loose a ball in the Sun? "
I expected more from an 18-1 fighter and all the hype surrounding him
And he was way to wreckless on the feet
And it was clearly 2-1 for Guillard. He ate way to many strikes on the feet and while he did get some takedowns, he did no damage and the closest thing he got to a sub was a kimura from the bottom after one of the many reversals Guillard made.
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