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Johnson vs McCall: Win Puts Mighty Mouse in Driver’s Seat for Flyweight Title

When Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Ian “Uncle Creepy” McCall first met at UFC on FX 2, it appeared as though Johnson had won by decision. A scoring error caused the decision to be ruled a draw, though.Johnson had his chance to prove that he was…

When Demetrious “Mighty Mouse” Johnson and Ian “Uncle Creepy” McCall first met at UFC on FX 2, it appeared as though Johnson had won by decision. A scoring error caused the decision to be ruled a draw, though.

Johnson had his chance to prove that he was the superior fighter on Friday, and he took it.

Johnson defeated McCall by unanimous decision at UFC on FX 3 and made sure there was little doubt about who the true winner was. Johnson was in control for the vast majority of the bout, and with the win he will move on to face Joseph Benavidez in the finals of the UFC Flyweight Championship tournament.

Mighty Mouse had dealt with a lot of disappointment prior to Friday night. He lost just his second career fight to Dominick Cruz in a Bantamweight Championship match back in October and then had to deal with the reversed decision against McCall. This victory gives him a lot of momentum and confidence moving forward.

Benavidez won’t be a walk in the park for Johnson, as he has an impressive 16-2 record in his own right, with both losses also coming against Cruz. Johnson, though, is the younger and more dangerous fighter at this point.

Neither Johnson nor Benavidez has ever been knocked out or submitted, however, so the bout should be a good one.

Now that Johnson has cleared the McCall hurdle, I can’t see anything slowing him down. What makes Johnson so good is that he is equally capable of making his opponent tap out, knocking him out or going the distance and winning it on the judges’ scorecards. That type of versatility will bode very well for him moving forward.

UFC has never before had a Flyweight Champion, so the winner will be carrying the torch for the weight class in the company. Not only is Johnson a great fighter, but he has a fantastic personality as well and would be an excellent person for UFC to build around. He likely won’t become as big of a star as someone like Jon Jones, since the flyweight division doesn’t receive as much attention, but he can be a cornerstone guy.

Johnson has been a part of some spectacular fights since WEC merged with UFC and he is the type of fighter that UFC would love to build pay-per-views and other large events around. Benavidez is a good representative as well. He won’t go quietly against Johnson, but most would probably agree that Johnson is the more exciting fighter.

Whenever the Johnson vs. Benavidez fight is announced it will certainly generate a great deal of interest. It should be great for UFC regardless of who wins, but after proving to everyone that he could beat McCall, the title will be Johnson’s to lose.

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UFC on FX Results: Power Ranking the June Knockouts

Knockouts are arguably the most exciting part of mixed martial arts, as they are definitive finishes that prove who the better man is. There are a number of ways a knockout can be achieved; punches, knees, kicks and elbows can get the job done.So far i…

So far in June, there have been some great knockouts in the two UFC events (TUF Finale and UFC on FX 3). Here is a power ranking of the knockouts so far.

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UFC on FX 3 Results: Recapping the Fight Night Bonuses

The UFC on FX 3 main card was electric.All four fights turned out to be excellent bouts, and the main-event rematch between Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall in which Johnson pulled out a win was as thrilling as their first.But many of these fighters c…

The UFC on FX 3 main card was electric.

All four fights turned out to be excellent bouts, and the main-event rematch between Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall in which Johnson pulled out a win was as thrilling as their first.

But many of these fighters could have earned bonuses tonight. Even those who lost to KO, like Josh Neer and Scott Jorgensen, put up tremendous efforts and fought hard right up until their respective losses. Those fighters who did receive bonuses earned them tonight and left fans looking for similar performances in the future.

Submission of the Night: Erick Silva

From the beginning, it looked like Silva was going to end up on the ground. His KO power was feared coming into the match, but Charlie Brenneman knew that Silva had to be on the mat if he was to be defeated.

In the first round, Silva’s striking game seemed hindered by Brenneman’s defense and takedown attempts. Finally, Brenneman had dropped for a takedown and got Silva down.

Silva’s ability to move to Brenneman’s back and sink a rear naked choke for the win by submission was impressive and laudable, earning every bit of the UFC on FX Submission of the Night bonus.

Knockout of the Night: Mike Pyle

Tonight’s card had two fantastic knockouts, but ultimately Pyle’s KO of Josh Neer was rewarded most.

Pyle had been shaken earlier in the fight by some of Neer’s shots. But he regrouped even while Neer had Pyle falling back to the fence, and Pyle pulled off a fantastic right hand to Neer’s jaw that dropped the fighter instantly.

Perhaps more impressive than Pyle’s punch itself was his ability to make a powerful knockout blow while dancing on the edge of defeat. When your defense is a short, strong right that KOs your opponent, you earn Knockout of the Night; Pyle is absolutely deserving.

Fight of the Night: Eddie Wineland vs. Scott Jorgensen

This bantamweight fight between Wineland and Jorgensen was a tough match for both fighters, but neither seemed ready to quit until one or the other was unable to go on.

Wineland arranged this by a win over Jorgensen via knockout—one for which he could have easily taken knockout of the night on any other night. Even in his loss, Jorgensen was relentless. He traded blows with Wineland, took a number of huge shots, landed some himself and persistently attempted to take the fight to the ground to use his strong wrestling against Wineland’s striking.

But even when Jorgensen couldn’t successfully use his wrestling game, he quickly got to his feet and the fighters traded blows again. It was an exciting, relentless effort that earned both fighters a $40,000 bonus for Fight of the Night.

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UFC on FX 3 Results: Has Charlie Brenneman Become Strictly a Gatekeeper?

Charlie Brenneman did what he had to do last night against Erick Silva. He fought through some strikes, fought through the boos of the crowd, and went for takedowns. He pushed Silva against the cage and tried to make it an ugly fight, at least for the …

He really had no other options though. Brenneman was outmatched, as he seems to be whenever he faces top competition.

His Rick Story win aside, Brenneman has never defeated a top competitor. And even that win has a little “what if” hovering over it because Story took the fight on very short notice.

This is in no way intended to denigrate Charlie Brenneman. He’s a very good fighter, and as tough as they come. But he just doesn’t have the skills to reach the next level.

At 31 years old, we’ve probably seen the best that Brenneman has to offer in the UFC. The Story fight was the pinnacle of his career, and with opponents getting better and better, that relegates him to gatekeeper status.

As dreaded as the “gatekeeper” tag may be, it’s not a label without some value. A fighter becomes a gatekeeper when it’s clear he’s peaked, and will not progress any further to the point where he’s considered, even by a stretch, a title contender.

Charlie Brenneman has reached that point.

You could argue that his UFC losses were to Johny Hendricks (potential title challenger), Anthony Johnson (light heavyweight futilely trying to stuff himself into a welterweight’s body), and Erick Silva (the next big thing). No shame in those losses. But that’s exactly what defines a gatekeeper—the consistent inability to defeat top level competition.

Too often “gatekeeper” is used as a pejorative term. Sometimes that’s the intended usage. Not here. Here, it’s simply a harsh reality.

Welterweight is a merciless category. MMAWeekly has Jon Fitch ranked at No. 7. When a fighter the quality of Fitch is No. 7, with a UFC record of 13-2-1, that makes it very difficult for a Charlie Brenneman, with a 4-3 UFC record to ever reach the pinnacle of such a division.

Of course, no fighter wants to accept this dreaded label. Every fighter wants to be a champion, and believes they can be. Becoming a gatekeeper means that dream is pretty much squashed. But eventually, practicality steps in. Being a gatekeeper makes a fighter a benchmark. It means they’re tough enough to validate a young lion like Erick Silva, and as difficult as that may be to accept, it is what it is.

That may conflict with the ego of a professional athlete, understandably, but everyone has got to make a living. And a UFC gatekeeper can earn a decent living.

Charlie Brenneman is a gatekeeper. That doesn’t mean he’s no good. That doesn’t mean he’s done. It just means he’ll never be the UFC welterweight champion. And there’s nothing wrong with that. At the end of the day, he’s still earning a living doing what he loves to do.

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UFC on FX 3 Results: Post-Fight Stock Report

UFC on FX 3 was a fantastic showing.Only one fight—Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall—went to decision, and even then the fighters delivered constantly until the end. Both Mike Pyle and Eddie Wineland delivered knockout blows, while Eri…

UFC on FX 3 was a fantastic showing.

Only one fight—Demetrious Johnson vs. Ian McCall—went to decision, and even then the fighters delivered constantly until the end. Both Mike Pyle and Eddie Wineland delivered knockout blows, while Erick Silva kept his wins in the UFC within the first round.

In a night with such telling victories, the futures of many main-card fighters were determined by tonight’s performances.

Here’s each main-card fighter’s post-fight stock after tonight.

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UFC on FX 3 Results: Full-Fight Highlights for Ian McCall vs. Demetrious Johnson

Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall faced off again at UFC on FX 3 for a chance to face Joseph Benavidez for the UFC flyweight title. Their first fight is considered an early candidate for fight of the year, which ended in controversy due to the Australian commission tabulating the score cards incorrectly. Due to how exciting the first fight was, there were concerns that the rematch wouldn’t live up to the expectations.

Those concerns were completely misplaced as the two fighters continued where they left off four months prior. The two fighters stood toe to toe and traded punches and kicks for another fifteen minutes. When the horn sounded, it was Johnson who proved to be the better man.

From the Bleacher Report play by play:

Round 3: The round opens with the fighters in the clinch. Demetrious landing some quick punches and McCall responds with his own. McCall tries for a takedown and when Demetrious clinches, he attacks the body. Demetrious lands some knees to the body and McCall with an elbow on the break. Demetrious gets McCall to the mat but struggles to hold the position. McCall back to his feet and they land simultaneous punches on the break. Strikes land for both in the center of the cage. McCall trips Johnson and lands a knee to the head as he stands. Johnson catches a leg and lands punches to the head. McCall clinches against the fence and they trade knees to the body and punches. McCall with a jumping knee on the break. They clinch again and throw more knees to the body. On the break Demetrious lands a nice right hand and a push kick. Last minute and they are keeping a ridiculous pace. Demetrious backs McCall against the fence and looks for a single. McCall rolls out and they end the round in a clinch. 10-9 Demetrious Johnson.

The win earns Johnson a title shot and dethrones McCall as the top flyweight in the world. Stay with Bleacher Report for more UFC on FX 3 fallout.

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