Few fighters have made a name for themselves quite like bantamweight prospect Jose Torres has on the amateur MMA scene. Torres, who is slated to debut for Titan FC in December, won over 20 fights and took home a pair of International Mixed Martial Arts Federation World Championships.
For as much success Torres had as an amateur, it’s a bit perplexing as to why he spent roughly two years on that scene, but it turned out the reason for his hesitancy to turn professional had less to do about his confidence as a fighter and more about the opportunities he had as an amateur athlete.
“We did the first world championships, I was able to win that,” Torres said on The MMA Report Live. “I wanted to turn pro, but I was going to my fifth year in college. I [had] a full ride on NCAA Division 2 wrestling, so with the NCAA rules, I could not turn professional. If I turned professional, I’d lose my ride, so I wanted to finish my season.”
Wrapping up his college career as a wrestler, Torres still had a couple of battles that he wanted to face as an amateur before making the transition to being a professional.
“Once I finished my season, the nationals and world were only three months away,” Torres said. “I argued with my coach. I didn’t want to do it again, but he convinced me to do the worlds again. I did it, won my second world championship and look where it got me today. After that, I dominated this year, and it kind’ve shows that I’m ready.”
Having that foundation as a collegiate wrestler, Torres certainly has the potential to succeed in the sport, and he’s had the potential develop in an unique environment for your prototypical debuting fighter. Recently, Torres has been paid to train at the KHK MMA Team, and the opportunity – which has created an environment in which Torres only has to focus on training as a young athlete – has been key to his growth.
“It’s been amazing. Team KHK, it’s a whole new experience,” Torres said. “They’re trying to change the world of MMA. They’re trying to change the whole financial status of a fighter being able to train. When I’m out here, I’m able to train day in and day out. I wake up. I eat. I train.”
In addition to getting paid to train at KHK, Torres also has a lot of security when it comes to potential medical issues, and the gym allows him to train with some veteran names in MMA.
“With this, everything is taken care of. If I need something, if an injury, if I need an x-ray, anything medically, I’m taken care of which is the best thing for a fighter,” Torres said. “On his pro debut, most guys are working and training. With this, I’m getting paid to train and do what I love to do, and just in case if anything does go wrong, I am completely taken care of.”
“For me, training here is the best possible thing I could think of. You even have fighters who came here: Renzo Gracie, Frankie Edgar, Khabib [Nurmagomedov], Islam [Makhachev], that just love the offer. If these guys are doing it, top-notch athletes, why shouldn’t I follow?”
Well, Torres has followed and shortly he’ll follow in their footsteps as a professional fighter. He plans to debut in Titan FC before the year ends. Torres is hoping his success as an amateur fighter as well as his time spent at KHK will lead to success in that outing, but regardless, Torres is already positive about the way his life has gone.
“I’m happy to do what I love to do. It’s perfectly for free, and I get paid doing it. I’m happy where I’m at.”