Manuel Torres believes the timing of his first main event couldn’t be more perfect, especially after Justin Gaethje pulled off the shocking upset of Ilia Topuria in the main event of UFC White House.
Torres faces Rafael Fiziev in enemy territory in Saturday’s UFC Baku lightweight headliner. Earlier this month, Gaethje became the undisputed UFC lightweight champion for the first time after a fourth-round corner-stoppage TKO victory.
When asked about how the fight went, Torres — like most — didn’t expect it to go the way that it did.
“It was surprising because if you think about it, they went to four rounds, he couldn’t do it,” Torres told MMA Fighting via an interpreter. “He couldn’t get it done against Gaethje. He had four rounds that he was trying, he was actually giving his best. He was. Big shots he was trying to [land], hitting him once in a while. but it wasn’t putting him down.
“He was finding him at times. At one point, you saw that the body shots and the liver shots, but he couldn’t finish it, and at the end, Justin just proved to be stronger.”
Topuria was a massive favorite heading into the fight, and many expected that if he retained the championship, “El Matador” would’ve tried to make a run at the welterweight title currently held by Islam Makhachev.
While Torres didn’t expect the UFC White House headline result, he admits he was on Team Gaethje heading into it for one big reason.
“I think that now, I think this makes the division flow more,” Torres said. “It [will] give opportunity to other fighters. I was surprised [how the fight went], but I was kind of going for Justin on that one. I had him.
“It went well for me at the end of the day.”
Fiziev looks to turn the ship around after getting stopped by Mauricio Ruffy in his most recent fight at UFC 325 in January, and losing four of his past five bouts — including a pair of decision losses to Gaethje.
Torres understands the dangers in front of him this weekend in his biggest spot to date, and getting the call to close a show is something the 31-year-old won’t take for granted.
“A dream come true,” Torres explained. “That means that the work has paid off, that with that, what I’ve done, has enabled me to actually get this opportunity. I’m happy that what I’ve done has led me to this: The opportunity to be in a main event and, God willing, I hope everything goes well this Saturday.
“[I’m thankful for] the opportunity to advance in the rankings, but feeling very proud of what I’ve done and the job we’ve been able to accomplish [so far].”
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