Miguel Torres, WEC: "It's Going to Be Fun to Get My Belt Back”

Former UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes said it while he was on his monstrous run, and now WEC bantamweight stud Miguel Torres is echoing those sentiments following his WEC 42 upset loss to Brian Bowles. It’s a lot easier to stay motivated when you’re on the bottom than when you’re the top dog.

“When you’re on top for a long time, it’s hard to keep pushing yourself because you’re always on top,” Torres told MMAJukie.com about Bowles snapping his 17-fight winning streak en route to capturing the title. “I’ve got to get back on the bottom because he’s on top, and I have something to work for now. It will be a good challenge for me.”

Well, let’s not get carried away. The loss was devastating. However if you don’t lose a fight in over five years, it’s highly unlikely that you start again from square-one. But, that is how Torres is approaching his newly-obtained “hunter” tag.

“For me, it’s not a step back at all,” Torres said. “It’s a new challenge in my career, and now I have something to look forward to, something to train for.”

Although Bowles held a perfect 7-0 record and cemented his top contender status a while back, Torres entered the title fight as a heavy favorite to retain his crown.

“In this sport, one shot can change everything,” Torres said. “There’s no excuses for what happened. Brian hits really hard. I saw his shot coming, but I couldn’t get out of the way of it—a big overhand right. He put it away. He’s a real aggressive young guy. He’s going to be a good champion.”

Torres faces the talented Joseph Benavidez at WEC 47 this Saturday in Columbus, Ohio. Benavidez holds an impressive 11-1 record, so he’s certainly not the easiest cat to steal a W from, however, Torres is up to the challenge as he has his sights set on reclaiming WEC gold sooner rather than later.

“It’s going to be fun to get my belt back,” Torres emphatically stated.