Miguel Torres vs. Takeya Mizugaki

Miguel Torres Scouting Report
Ht/Wt: 5’9/135 lbs.
Age: 28
Hometown: East Chicago, Ind.
Fighting out of: East Chicago, Ind.
Team: Torres Martial Arts
Record: 36-1

The Breakdown: When you’re talking about a pound-for-pound standard bearer, it’s easy to forget their flaws and focus on the awe-inspiring aesthetics of their game. One of Miguel Torres’ forgotten flaws is his substandard wrestling -- a flaw that Mizugaki is custom-made to exploit. Recognizing that Mizugaki is the superior wrestler needs to inform Torres’ game plan for solving one of Shooto’s premier exports.

To that end, Torres’ reach is his friend. He showed off a jab against Manny Tapia that had the ghost of Sonny Liston smiling. It’s no secret that Mizugaki likes to brawl a bit, and that habit has cost him before. Torres can use that weakness to keep this from fight from turning into a wrestling meet. While Torres has the grappling to turn Mizugaki into a Twizzler, he needs to keep Mizugaki from going Karl Gotch on him from the opening bell.

The X Factor: Torres is absolutely fearless about testing himself against his opponent’s strengths, and while that mentality has yet to cost him, it could if he ends up struggling to solve Mizugaki’s stultifying top-control game. Pride comes before the fall, and unless Torres has something beyond his usual fistic fireworks, he may not get a chance to light the fuse.

Takeya Mizugaki Scouting Report
Ht/Wt: 5’7/135 lbs.
Age: 25
Hometown: Kanagawa, Japan
Fighting out of: Kanagawa, Japan
Team: Shooting Gym Hakkei
Record: 11-2-2

The Breakdown: First things first, Mizugaki needs to make peace with the fact that Torres is the better striker and grappler. Reality check in hand, Mizugaki is still one of the division’s best wrestlers, and his ground-and-pound makes him a real threat to Torres’ divisional dominance. The first step is obvious: Get inside on Torres before he finds his range and get him on the mat.

Things get complicated from there, though, as the solution to Torres’ guard remains one of the unsolved mysteries of “Unsolved Mysteries.” One thing is certain: Mizugaki needs to pass guard or get tapped. Any high-level jiu-jitsu player in MMA relies on controlling his opponents inside the guard. If Mizugaki can consistently get past Torres’ legs, he has as good a chance as anyone in the division of giving Torres the Buster Douglas treatment.

The X Factor: No matter what, Mizugaki needs to stick to his guns and win or lose on the strength of his top control. Standing with Torres leaves Mizugaki’s short reach and iffy chin out there to be exploited, and there may not be a bantamweight alive who can roll with Torres on the mat. Discipline has been a problem for Mizugaki in the past. Torres only needs the smallest of openings to add another clip to the highlight reel.

* * *

The Bottom Line: Sure, Mizugaki can out-wrestle Torres, but that won’t mean much when Torres is picking him apart on the feet and mat. Pulling a 25-minute top-control special on Torres is about as likely as me sitting through an episode of “The Gilmore Girls.” Watch for another sterling performance from Torres as he picks apart Mizugaki on the feet before he turns a desperate takedown by his would-be conqueror into a fight-ending triangle choke.