UFC on FX 3 Results: Three Stars

Since we at Fight Cove operate out of the Great White North, what better way to honor one of Canada’s great pastimes (Hockey) than to use the famous “three stars” system for UFC events? If you are unfamiliar with the system, this is how it works. An independent, non-bias viewer (in this case, yours truly) selects the three top performers from the event to name as the “three stars”. If you couldn’t figure it out on your own, the first star is the most impressive performer from the event, the second star is the second most impressive, and so on and so forth.

The “three stars” are judged off the effectiveness and overall impact of their performance. Still following? Good, cause here are the “three stars” from “UFC on FX 3: Johnson vs. McCall”.

Third Star - Mike Pyle
Like fine wine, Mike “Quicksand” Pyle is only getting better with age. At 36 years young, the welterweight veteran in is the midst of the best run of his MMA career, as he has won five of his past six bouts with the lone loss coming to welterweight phenom Rory MacDonald. In his most recent winning effort, Pyle become the first man to finish Josh Neer in over two years, and the first man to knock Neer out in over five years when he connected with a stinging overhand right square on the chin of “The Dentist”. The punch sent Neer crashing to the mat in the final five seconds of the opening round. It was a gruesome finish, but one that will be replayed over and over on Pyle’s highlight reel for the rest of his career.

Second Star - Erick Silva
Brazilian prospect Erick “Indio” Silva became the first man to force Charlie Brenneman to tap out with a beautiful rear-naked choke submission in the first round of their welterweight affair. From stuffing Brenneman’s takedown attempts to crisp striking and the slick groundwork that led to the submission, Silva was on point from start to finish as he picked up by far the biggest win of his MMA career. The fight with Brenneman was a huge test for Silva, as “The Spaniard” doesn’t lie down for anyone. Silva had never faced a high quality wrestler before and coming into the bout many questioned his ability to repeatedly stuff takedowns. Silva did just that and passed his toughest test to date with flying colors.

First Star - Demetrious Johnson
With the opportunity to fight Joseph Benavidez for the first-ever UFC flyweight championship on the line, Demetrious Johnson delivered the goods with a convincing unanimous decision victory over Ian McCall. Some fighters would be discouraged after having a win taken away from them and facing so much controversy, but not Johnson. “Mighty Mouse” came out and looked like a more refined version of himself compared to when he first fought McCall three months ago. Although his victory may not have been the most impressive or dominant of the night, Johnson’s ability to pull off the victory in such a high stakes affair made him the biggest winner of the night at UFC on FX 3.

Mike Bohn, founder and lead writer of FightCove.com, wrote this article. You can follow Mike on Twitter at @FightCoveMike. Also, follow @FightCove on Twitter and “Like” Fight Cove on Facebook.