Jose Torres is a mixed martial artist who competes in the flyweight division for Brave CF. The American Top Team prospect is best known for his stint in the UFC.
Transcript
Jose Torres: Was how ufc’s handled it and how Bellator is handled at Bellator just went and postponed everything? What have you uh-oh you just like tuned out there for a second? What’S uh, what’s Braves approach, um, no brave was actually the first promotions did not just cancelled or postponed. One of them, but they postponed all their future events until pretty much. This whole pandemic is over worldwide because they are a global promotion. You’Re, my father supposed to be in Brazil, then I believe they had another fight plan in Romania and it’s Sweden. So it’s all over the world I mean literally, they were trying to. You know talk to every single country in trying to figure out what’s next and know. The next event was mine, which again I was down here three months, training and sadly had to be postponed. Ufc Brasilia was happening and that technically wasn’t even allowed, but the fighters and all the crew are already there. So Brazil was just like you know what you guys can still run the event just make it close doors. You guys are already here we’re not gon na. Just say you back home might as well do what you came here to do. So you know that was technically the last big event that happened, but after that I believe the next day brave was like you know what we’re just not even gon na test it. We don’t want you guys to get super excited for this fight and the day before we have to cancel it on you, so they ended up postponing our event and then they go. You know what, let’s just play this as safe as possible. That’S um! You meant to communicate with all the government bodies and go we’re just gon na we’re just gon na wait. We don’t want to give anyone high hopes like right. Honestly, the UFC is kind of doing that, like five islands every single week and Mortal Kombat – and this may that’s cool nothing, nothing bad about Fire Island. I think it’s an awesome idea. I think it’s a really really cool concept just right now, no one should be going anywhere. You know they helped me. I want to go back home to Chicago and come back to training. That honestly might be the dumbest thing to do. You know, then. I have to go home, I have to go through an airport. I have to go through two airports, possibly three. If I have a layover, I’m exposed to many things, many people, many different surroundings and then, by the time I get to Chicago it’s a hold in population that possibly has called the nineteen much bigger population to Florida. So it’s a you know, it’s a crazy thing! Right now the world’s going to, but I think right now – we’re all should be staying home and happy that everyone, it’s everyone that is healthy and alive and do anything yeah. It’S good. It’S good that you have that. That sort of outlook find a lot of MMA fighters tend to be like yeah down a fight anywhere. So it’s good that you have that you know rational thinking like yeah. You know I, even though I’m healthy, even though you know I’m trained, I’m fit I’m putting other people at risk. So it’s good. It’S good to see that sort of perspective as well. I’M not gon na lie. If they called me to fight tomorrow, I would love it yeah one year, but there’s also that selfish perspective of I haven’t found one year. I would love mone. My career doesn’t advance in any aspect. Until I fight win or lose, I did get inside the cage and I’m just I’m I’m itching to get back in there, but what my parallel there’s 92, if I decide to go home after this fight, she’s the one put at risk. My mother’s, I believe you know in her mid-50s, that’s another person at risk. You know I lost my father last year, I’m not gon na have this. You know, try to happen again. My there’s actually a girl down here, which made it a little more realistic. There’S a girl down here who trains her father just passed away because of Koba 19. You know so it’s like! Oh man, this ain’t, no conspiracy, theory this stuff. Is this really happening to real people all over the world? Yeah yeah, absolutely um! What’S it what’s it like, I mean, obviously, the last interview I heard from you was shortly after you’re released from the UFC a year and a half ago you signed a four-fight deal. You’Ve had one fight and obviously, like you mentioned, you had the unfortunate loss on your family. So, first off sorry about sorry to hear that and but now this so it just seems like you know, there’s your first fight with Amira got postponed you’re supposed to fight in the Philippines. Then you fought in Jordan and then now two fights have been cancelled. You’Ve, like you, said, you’re itching to get back in there. Do you have an idea of when that’s gon na be, and if so, do you think have you heard obviously you’re part of the flyweight tournament? Is it still going to be Nicola or is there another another name, that’s been coming up. You know. I talked to one of the guys today now actually, after this interview, we’ll be doing a whole life thing with Carlos Kramer, four brave and talking about that. But it’s it’s all those things that we just don’t know. You know I would love it to be a flyweight tournament. From what I know I talked to some of the guys yesterday they said yes, it’s something we still weren’t going to do. It might be sped up a little bit if you guys are all down for it. We might have two flights a day, just like the PFO just change the rules a little bit, so it can be a little healthier. Maybe you know two rounds, maybe the rounds or less time for three rounds. You just never know so we’re trying to figure it out. We want to make it as exciting as possible, so you know brave definitely wants to crown their flyweight champion sooner rather than later. So then, eventually they can make super fights. Maybe you know, let’s say if I did win the Bell me there’s a Stephan moment, the bantamweight champion, which that guy is the longest reigning champ for her braids, which is awesome, um your mailing, his name last year too. So yeah man he’s because i commentated first for the very first breathe event and is it okay cool? Like I don’t know, many of these fighters all died, and I saw this fight against France. My lambo and I know France, I trained with them. I know how hard he hits and Stephan was getting beat up. I was like man, this hole right now. I know we’re second, if they’re running it comes back in dominates the fighting like damn. I like this kid and out of nowhere he does a rematch and then fights it much more guys like he gets, beat up every first round and somehow prevails comes through at first. I was like this is the fighter I want to fight. This is just an exciting type of fight, because I’m the same exact way if I’m able to push through after the first one again, I’ve only lost one of the amateur. One is a pro. If I can push you in the first round, I will in the second third fourth fifth: if it’s Championships I’ll fight the longer it goes the worse it is for my opponents cuz, I’m the conditioning I say see Stephen moment so I’m like that would be just A routine fight, but I don’t know what brain’s gon na do when it comes to the flyweight tournament, they’re, really just trying to focus on the health, pretty much all their assets and going hey. We’Re trying to spend a positive, positive message and I’m just one of those people on board as well and they’re. Just talking to the to the you know, the governing bodies are going. Can we have an event? Is it healthy? Is it safe? Instead of going honestly, you know I’m not trying to past UFC, but it does look bad we’re like Deena’s the only person in the world trying away, and then he goes. Okay, we’re gon na do this. What Indian ground are Native American ground we gon na. Do this at what state is gon na, allow this up we’re gon na, buy an island, and do this like dude relax as much as fans, you long to see the fights again what when he was like five years in the making? I would love to see the fight, but there’s so many factors that risk. I think Oh, was the Wonder Boy Thompson. He ended up putting a quote out there saying he goes dude, there’s a bunch of old people where I live. I’M not gon na put their health a risk yeah. I might be perfectly fine, but I mean I catch something and give it to them and then yeah there goes a domino effect. Yeah yeah! Absolutely what’s it what’s it like I mean you were supposed to fight in Jordan or you did fight in Jordan, you’re supposed to fight in the Philippines. What’S the fan base like there? Obviously you know I I’m from Canada. So I know the Canadian fan base is very passionate. You know, we’ve got guys like GSP, TJ grant super passionate about them, and then you got Brazilian fans and the u.s. fans seem to be like their fans, but they don’t they’re not as passionate about local fighters. How did you find Jordan they’re? Definitely not as passionate to local fighters or the Americans, which really really sucks again? You see fighters, for example, lomachenko any Pacquiao. I can’t Ricky had all these people that are from different countries. Their whole commentary follows into all these advances. Rob the whole country shuts down it’s actually, given there are many Pacquiao fights. There is literally zero crime in the Philippines when that when a fight is happening before after I don’t know, but that fight there in those 36 minutes, it’s ridiculous. So that’s how crazy it is. But um when I went to Jordan, I was a little spectacle. You know or skeptical. Excuse me a little skeptical because I was like man, I’m honestly in the Middle East, I’m an American. Sometimes you know again the way media portrays p-people, especially in the States here, everyone, the state’s here again with Donald Trump, everyone’s, like all Muslims boomers. This that’s like wasn’t the problem. It’S certain people that just so happen to be Muslim, that are the problem, and but do you have people like Trump and all these people again, whatever the case may be, so I was a little nervous out there and when I walked out, I was like you Know adjust the plate safe, I’m not gon na walk out with my American flag. I just don’t want to do it plus. I was literally the only American on the card, so I was like I plates it plus I was fighting you know, guy who was born in Iraq. He was my ranking refugee moved to you, know London in UK, so just like oh yeah, I’m playing as safe as possible. So when I walked out honestly, I did hear a couple boos, but my Iraqi opponent walked out. First, I’m gon na Baz is a great fighter, loving a no big prospect. Yeah, you want your Middle Eastern guy to really come up as spelling, because middle Easterns aren’t really known for being animators. Not exactly yet – and I think that’s a brave is doing really really well showcasing them, but they wan na who doesn’t wan na beat the American yeah. I was like. I was like booed. Ah all right, and then I got there. I thought if people weren’t enjoying the fight that after Amira, I was trying to be respectful, um and and and fit to the culture. Like I love my makeup. What’S up guys, I really appreciate the love of the poor man. It really does a job douche bag. American, if you want to say stereotypically, cold, becoming tenant stuff, like that you know so I was like the and that are being really really cool. Actually, some of the guys there took me out to petrol, which is one of the natural wonders in the world, and it was, it was definitely a fun experience. I want to do it again. I really was heartbroken when I had to pull out for the Philippines fight. I really wanted to fight in the Philippines. Manny Pacquiao is my favorite fighter, something I want to go. Maybe maybe so you know maybe one day hopefully, but I may give Steve a moment. It’Ll be even better, but it’s a time with ton, I’m excited to just fire it anywhere. I know when I find Bahrain in the Middle East, which I’ve just gone many times that country loves me. It’S it’s it’s another home for me. So I’m like this right here is: it’s really awesome. How have you having because you’ve been doing some common commentating? How have you have you found that it is it it has? It was a natural transition for you, obviously you’re well-spoken. I know like a lot of fighters tend to transition into into it. How was the transition did you? Do you enjoy it? I liked it a lot. It was definitely a little different. It’S not the same as just randomly talking to your girlfriend or your parents at home. While watching a fight you you know you can’t just like. Oh man, you have to kind of really explaining and doing those things on sometimes because most of the fans are average fans. They don’t know much about the sport. They just love to see blood gore. You know jokes, all that stuff. So when I’m talking I’m honestly just talking about what I see, I just have to break it down a little more. I think the hardest part is not getting too excited and then also not being quiet to where I’m messing up the or other person. Next to me, you know cuz, we all have to be in sync and have a good time. Even if you don’t like the person, you have to have a good time fake it til you make it up a big and you honestly honestly have to be a little more over exaggerated. Sometimes you know again, you see like the the UFC when they people get knocked out a little bit, but it is for me, I believe, in natural um transition. It’S a lot of fun. I want to do the warm disappoint and been able to do more, but you know one day: maybe you never know it’s got ta, be it’s gon na be difficult to stay on bias like especially if there’s someone on the card or someone’s fighting like I don’t Like him very much, it’s got, it’s got to be difficult to keep that unbiased to yourself like Dominick Cruz, for example. He commentated uriah favours fight. I can imagine wanting to just be like nah he’s losing, but you want to be some apart and it’s honestly for me. It’S not that I don’t like certain people, you, usually I just whatever I’ll, keep it as neat as possible with that. But it’s hard to be overexcited about a fighter that you, like you, know friend, going in there cuz, I’m friends with a lot of people. So when I see people you know fight each other, I’m like man, I don’t want to. Are we gon na watch this fight because it’s just two really really good guys but um? Sometimes I’m just you have to be a suture, it’s possible that the hardest part or even tell the other commentator next to me, like hey, I’m, not gon na lie you. This is my friend, so I might be a little overexcited about this, so I want you to be the devil’s advocate and root for the other guy, or something like that. So we can break it even and it seems fair on both sides. Yeah absolutely. I know UFC is kind of in your past it’s year and a half or so removed from from your release. What are your thoughts now on the the way the divisions kind of played out? Obviously they released a bunch of people, they kind of looked like the division was gon na disappear and then now it looks like it’s back up again. I think you know one of the main reasons for your release was perhaps the you know the dwindling of the flyweight division. It’S got to almost be a little bit bittersweet to see it kind of you know rise again. What are your thoughts on on the division? I don’t really want to say it’s rising again, because it’s been at the same spots been like at a limbo for, since I left you know really, it was more like we’re gon na cut people once they lose or the contracts over. You know I was one of the first because I lost Jared Brooks was next Justin Scoggins and it just start going down and they only kept a handful of people. Why? It wasn’t? Because all good, because there are still people that are obviously lost. I mean look at Dustin Ortiz, do you thoughts against Joseph Benavidez and he was cut? I thought was a veteran in the UFC in general and a veteran and a pioneer in the flyweight division. But then you have, you know guys like well, who beat me Alex Perez Perez loss against just many of his next fight, but then he gets called back. It’S like okay, Luis mocha, got to lose four in a row and then still got to come back after he was released. He got he had to come back like three months later or something like that at the bantamweight division. Some fighters, like myself, were not allowed to bump up, even though I have my wins at the time, we’re at the bantamweight division. So it’s like this doesn’t really mean being fair. It’S very political and very like hey, I’m your friend, I’m gon na help you out, but dude. I don’t even like you, your honor. I don’t really the conversation with you so you’re out, so it does suck. But when it comes to the UFC and what I believe is next with the division, I really don’t know. Courtney gar Brent says he’s gon na supposedly try to cut down that cuz. He he’s bigger than TJ and TJ had a hard time cutting down. So I don’t see him trying to do it here. The struggles make a bomb. It’S all, I’m seeing him doing that, but um. So we don’t really want to come back down. I know that’s a fact: Benavidez lost, they were hoping, but he doesn’t win and that didn’t happen. Um sure great, oh, you know, I believe, has a couple more fights under contract less. You can’t cut him because he’s technically won his last fight. So this divisions really a limbo they’re. Looking for a new champion they’re looking for the young uns, I mean kayo from France. I heard the Russian guy that just beat Somalia. Obviously the guy would be me how it’s Perez and, I believe, is a handful of other. Is that they’re really looking as prospects, but they said the same thing with Sergio pack doesn’t want some Joseph Benavidez and they else that didn’t happen as well. So I don’t see anything happening anytime soon, maybe it’ll just last for a little bit. Some of those guys would be a lot of the venom way, but I don’t see anything happening progressively at least yeah. It definitely is unusual like especially like when you look at your, you were eight and one you had a win, you had a loss, any other division and no one gets cut, you know so it’s and you think about it. Your only loss is to the guy who’s ranked six in the world, so we’ll see. There’S there’s also the bad thing. Is that and all technicality it’s not to belittle some of the fighters which accounted does is the top 15 guys in UFC or the only 15 guys in the flyweight division yep. So there was 40 finalists now there’s 15 and no offense those guys a lot of them have lost, but there’s still somehow ranked top in the world. And then I think that does be a little bench. A bunch of the guys, like myself, Adriano Moraes, a1c champion bunch of the guys I want to see other fly weights and brave risin. You know so it does look bad upon us off because we will see is known as the predominant promotion. But you know all 15 guys are ranked yeah and I think the I personally, the best the best 125 are, is in one Fc right meet since Johnson’s over there, the best of all time, arguably the greatest of all time, any division isn’t even the UFC, and I think that that definitely doesn’t shine a positive light on on the division in the UFC. Is that, ultimately, the goal? If, if for whatever reason within the next two years, that division picks up steam, it’s got 45 50 people. Is your goal to end up back in the UFC or is that something that’s like it’s in the past? I don’t. I want to look forward, I’m enjoying my time and brave all right now. It’S definitely the past. I’M definitely looking forward to what’s. Next and brave. I’Ve only had one fight in one year, so I definitely want to make a time for that. They’Re letting me come and team they’re really trying to build me, promote me and three, I’m finally being respected as the individual degree resin that I came into you know and both promotions with, I thought the way I’m being treated now was the way I thought the Ufc was gon na treat me but didn’t happen whatsoever. I was literally I’ve never been so belittled with my resume. It’S it’s! It’S ridiculous and it’s not to put myself in a pedestal. I’Ve worked hard for what I chief. So I believe I deserve some typos yeah but being signed to a very last-minute fight nine days long six pounds be forced into it. All ten calls her last minute. No one really cared about my my resume. If I was any other weight class, I would have been highlighted no problem, but because I was a flyweight, a dying weight class. It didn’t really matter. I mean you, I can say any bad things which I didn’t really say bad things. I was kind of playing the business aspect and that’s why it was really at least first, but then you got called me carton trash and all these people talking trash. I should say in a way and they’re perfectly fine they’re hired, so it’s like if I was a different way concert of indifference. So for me, if I’m not looking at the jokes whatsoever anytime soon, nor am I ever really, but if I were to try to come back, it’s like. I want to see some type of change. I want to see some progressive movement of going. This is a way class that we’re trying to build back up and definitely 100 %, trying to keep instead of going more like right now, if they want to call me right now with 100 cents, a no yeah, absolutely I mean the way you were treated. You’Ve made a pretty vocal of when you were released as well. As you know, everyone in the division seems to be. You know, a kind of in limbo unless you’re Joseph Benavidez, or guys who were promoted by the organization. There’S no one’s really been been super super content at 125 and I guess some non Mme Mme material for people like myself, who are in quarantine, aren’t allowed to leave the house what sorts of recommendations do you have? What are you are you watching? Any TV shows is there anything out there that you’re that you’re doing to keep yourself occupied um I’ve actually been more tired. Now than I was during training I rather be getting beat up and what I’m doing now, I’m actually I say ATT in the dorms, but I you know, go a couple of minutes away to my Nana’s house and he has two kids and they’re 9 and 11. Those girls tired me out, like it, is exhausting. I’M the guy. That’S like hard come on. Let’S play girls. Are we gon na do like we have a trampoline. We have a pool two things. I’Ve always wanted. As a kid. I always had a fool like one of those like builds up one day at the floor named brown, it’s just just a shocker to me, but they have a trampoline, something yeah cool dude. They just don’t get off me. It’S like what are you doing? What are you doing? What are you doing? What are you doing, and I’m like like right now? I literally just finished the workout and they kept on coming in the garage because there’s bags in the grounds I kept on coming in the graduate I’m filming, make it like a little technique. Videos and like are you done yet? I knew you bothered you know, so it does become exhausting on all the parents out there and believe I have any kids man. This is exhausting good job. Guys never do this for 18 years, but um they take all their energy out of me and it’s it’s fun though it definitely nice experience and then play Nintendo switch, has probably been one of the biggest things. I would love to read I’d love to practice different language. I would love to watch movies, but honestly I get so lazy. I’M like I’m gon na be productive after this nap, so it just never happens. Yeah, I’m kind of in the same boat, that’s kind of why I started this. I was bored, there’s no UFC, no sports. So I said you know what I’m gon na start: a podcast they’re building something up, I’m passionate about it, huge fan and thank you for taking the time, and I I appreciate you, you you make it some time to speak. To me. Like a shame, I was honored thank you for the questions actually really good questions, real good stats. I like that. I looked up your slot so appreciate it and yeah man, it’s it’s wrong or through a struggle, but the good thing is, I guess the selfish aspect, but it is a positive thing, is that we are definitely 100 % not alone in this um. We are all losing money and losing time losing whatever the case may be, but it’s we’re all doing this together. So you know, don’t don’t feel super bad for yourself. It’S definitely not one of those dark clouds. It’S just hovering over you. It’S hungry over everybody, yeah, perfect wise words, a great way to end it thanks man, no problem. I take care yourself, yeah you to wash your hands yeah
