Gian Villante vs. Patrick Cummins in the works for UFC on FOX 25
Newsday.com is reporting that New York native Gian Villante will clash with Patrick Cummins at UFC on FOX 25 in Long Island on July 22nd. This matchup was initially booked for UFC Fight Night 102 in Albany this past December, but Cummins had to pull out due to staph infection.
Villante (15-8) has alternated between wins and losses in his last five fights and is coming off a third-round TKO setback to Maurício “Shogun” Rua at UFC Fight Night 106. The 31-year-old hasn’t lost back-to-back fights since 2011 when he was competing in Strikeforce. Cummins (9-4) snapped a two-fight skid when he defeated Jan Błachowicz via majority decision earlier this month at UFC 210. “Durkin” has gone 5-4 during his UFC tenure.
Former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres announces MMA retirement At 36 years of age, Miguel Torres is hanging up his gloves for good. The former WEC bantamweight champion announced Thursday on Facebook that he’s ending his 15-year career in MMA. Here’s what he had to say on his Facebook account:
“As i sit here on the mat in my academy contemplating my life and all of the possibilities that can manifest from just mere choice, my heart feels too overburdened and overwhelmed to be able to seriously train for another fight,” Torres posted on Facebook. “Wearing so many hats does not afford me the time to seriously do what is in my heart to do. When this journey started it was to make a name for myself, show everyone that i was not an ordinary man, to show all the little guys size doesn’t matter, to make my family proud of all their sacrifices, so my daughter would know her daddy did something special for her, and now things are different. Doesn’t feel like my effort is for the love of the fight or competition anymore its just about a paycheck to buy unneeded things and taxes to a corrupt system. Have been bouncing back and forth from injuries the last 20 years, always training through the pain and fighting to build my brand and make my mark in the world. Any of my training partners, promoters, or any promotion i fought for was always aware of these things but the show still went on. Can no longer do it the way i have been. To not do it the right way or to fight small battles in the middle of training camps leads to ugly situations in the cage. It breaks my heart to write this but i officially announce my retirement from mixed martial arts.” Torres (44-6) had an impressive run early in his career that saw him go 37-1 and win the WEC bantamweight title in 2008, defeating former champion Chase Beebe at WEC 32. After losing the title to Brian Bowles at WEC 42, Torres went on a 3-5 slide, suffering setbacks to Joseph Benavidez, Michael McDonald before an extremely close decision loss to Demetrious Johnson at UFC 130. Torres last competed at United Combat League: Havoc In Hammond 3 where he won by first-round submission over Lloyd Carter this past September.
