Mike Chiappetta • E-mail

He is already considered among the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, but after another dominant win, the question is how much longer until Miguel Torres in considered the best?

The WEC bantamweight champion improved his stunning record to 35-1 with a second-round TKO over Manny Tapia. In extending his win streak to 16 straight matches, he has not tasted the bitterness of defeat in five years.

Just as impressive as the numbers is the method behind them. Torres was challenged by Tapia to stand up with him. Such challenges in MMA are essentially a question of manhood, and despite the fact that Torres held a significant grappling advantage in the fight, he did in fact beat Tapia at his own game.

Torres won the first round by utilizing his jab, a strategy that maximized a significant edge in reach. Within a few minutes, it became obvious that Tapia was best served going to Torres’ body, while Torres could hit him at will.

Torres rocked Tapia midway through the second round, scoring with an overhand right that felled his opponent. Torres rushed in to finish, but Tapia held on. After they both returned to their feet, Torres found the mark with another straight right, just 20 seconds after the first one. Tapia crashed down to the mat and Torres followed up with several hard shots before the fight was stopped.

“I just wanted to be a little calm out there,” said Torres, who boasts one of the longest win streaks in the sport. “Last time out, I got a little emotional, a little crazy. I want to fight like this all the time. I knew Manny was going to come with big punches. I wanted to throw the jab to measure him up, and then come with the big right.”

Torres, who fought most of his career in Midwest promotions, has only fought four times in the WEC, but has finished all four fights and hasn’t even gone to a decision since 2005. That level of domination has caused many to mention his name among the Anderson Silvas, Georges St. Pierres and B.J. Penns of the world.

But the always humble Torres doesn’t get caught up in the comparisons.

“The next step is the next person,” he said. “There’s a lot of great 135ers out there. The WEC has the best in the world, and I’m here to fight the best in the world.”

The night was essentially designed as a showcase for the division, with three of the four televised fights featuring 135ers.                       

Division prospect Joseph Benavidez made a successful showing, defeating Danny Martinez via unanimous decision in his WEC debut.

Benavidez (9-0) trains under former WEC featherweight champ Urijah Faber, and he showed some of the frenetic pace and creative striking that is the Faber trademark, controlling all three rounds in an almost exclusively standup battle.

Neither fighter landed any huge shots in the fight, but Benavidez, who had six submissions in his eight prior wins, surprisingly kept the fight standing and got the better of the exchanges, constantly moving and consistently throwing combinations. Martinez had his best flurry with a minute to go in the fight, but it was too little, too late.

In another bantamweight fight, Brian Bowles also kept his record perfect, securing a third-round guillotine choke for the win.

Bowles won both of the first two rounds with superior striking and a few takedowns. Bowles was able to outstrike Ribeiro, who was a boxing champion in Brazil. During the opening 10 minutes, Ribeiro’s best weapon was leg kicks. Ribeiro, likely sensing he was behind on the judges’ scorecards, shot in for a takedown of his own early in the third, but Bowles anticipated it and locked him in the guillotine for the submission.

“The guillotine is my go-to move in the gym,” said Bowles, who added that he hoped he’d get a shot at the title. “I get a lot of people in the shoot on it.”

In a featherweight fight, Wagnney Fabiano improved to 11-1 with a third-round arm triangle choke victory over Akitoshi Tamura.

Fabiano, a former IFL featherweight champ, was making his WEC debut, and struggled with the Japanese veteran in what essentially became a no-gi jiu-jitsu match. Much of the action took place on the ground with Fabiano trying desperately to pass Tamura’s guard, and Tamura defending. Prior to the fight-finishing choke, Tamura came closest to ending the match. In the third, Fabiano tried a takedown, and Tamura caught his head in a guillotine. As they fell to the mat, Tamura tried to lock his legs and cinch up the guillotine. With his head locked up, Fabiano used the side of the cage to defend the choke, using his free legs to walk the wall and pass into side control.

Fabiano then bloodied Tamura with hammerfists before the finish.

Full results
Shane Roller def. Mike Budnik via guillotine submission, Rd. 1
Cub Swanson def. Hirouki Takaya via unanimous decision
Bart Palaszewski def. Alex Karalexis via TKO, Rd. 2
Diego Nunes def. Cole Province via unanimous decision
Mark Munoz def. Ricardo Barros via TKO, Rd. 1
Johny Hendricks def. Justin Haskins via TKO, Rd. 2
Joseph Benavidez def. Danny Martinez via unanimous decision
Brian Bowles def. Will Ribeiro via guillotine submission, Rd. 3
Wagnney Fabiano def. Akitoshi Tamura via arm triangle, Rd. 3
Miguel Torres def. Manny Tapia via TKO, Rd. 2