UTICA, N.Y. – Restless and frustrated over not getting a call to the UFC, Jose Torres wanted to make his case bulletproof.

Torres, a former flyweight and bantamweight champion in the regional stalwart Titan FC, planned to go for an unprecedented third title in the promotion’s featherweight division. So he ate his way toward his new weight class, getting up to 151 pounds.

Then his phone rang.

Understandably, Torres was a bit apprehensive. But after a brief consult with his “weight management specialist” and his coach, he got just the pep talk he needed.

“‘You’re not out of shape; you’re just fat,’” Torres remembers his weight guru telling him nine days prior to UFC Fight Night 131.

Only 26 pounds stood between Torres and his dream. With some major tweaking of his diet and a hard session of weight-cutting, he managed to hit the scale at 125.2 pounds, well within the limit for his UFC flyweight debut at Adirondack Bank Center in Utica, N.Y.

Torres said watching other fighters cut as many as 20 pounds prior to weigh-ins made his four pounds seem insignificant. Still, given all the weight he’d dropped coming in, it was a miserable event – four to five hours of suffering.

“That was easily the hardest weight cut mentally that I’ve ever done,” Torres said. “Physically, I knew we could do it. But mentally, it’s draining on the body.”

Things didn’t get any easier when Torres (8-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC) finally stepped into the octagon. Brooks (13-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) dropped him early with a spinning backfist and controlled him for the rest of the opening frame. He had no idea what hit him – only that he gotten flashed.

But then, something crazy happened. Brooks lifted Torres up for a slam in the second frame and made a critical error of going airborne to increase the impact and wow the crowd. Instead, Brooks landed on his head and knocked himself out, allowing Torres to quickly pound his way to a TKO.

It wasn’t the way Torres thought he’d get the win, but he’s happy he made the gamble to drop the weight.

Now, he’s going to enjoy a trip to the ice cream shop, courtesy of his weight management specialist.

“That’s why I like his protocol,” he said.

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 131, check out the UFC Events section of the site.