Rising welterweight prospect Erick Silva will enter this evening’s bout the heavy favorite over veteran Charlie Brenneman.The Brazilian up-and-comer has had an impressive rise into the UFC ranks, finishing his opponents in 10 of his 13 victories. Silva…
Rising welterweight prospect Erick Silva will enter this evening’s bout the heavy favorite over veteran Charlie Brenneman.
The Brazilian up-and-comer has had an impressive rise into the UFC ranks, finishing his opponents in 10 of his 13 victories. Silva’s debut at UFC 134 showcased his vicious ability to end fights, defeating Luis Ramos just 40 seconds into the first round.
Silva followed up this impressive debut with another dominant performance, this time over Carlo Prater at UFC 142.
However, what would have been his fifth straight MMA win was overturned by referee Mario Yamasaki who controversially ruled the fight a disqualification loss to Silva for what he believed to be illegal strikes to the back of Prater’s head.
Despite the recent setback, it is this killer instinct that makes Silva such a dangerous fighter. His well-rounded skill set, comprised of a black belt level jiu-jitsu game and heavy hands standing up, will prove to be too much for Brenneman as they clash at tonight’s UFC on FX 3.
Brenneman is a solid wrestler with decent striking skills, but has faltered in the past against opponents more explosive than him.
The AMA Fight Club product’s three career defeats are all against powerful and fast fighters including current UFC welterweight Johny Hendricks and former UFC vets John Howard and Anthony Johnson. Like these previous foes, Silva has similar speed and power but also a ground game to match.
Silva will pick Brenneman apart on his feet and force him to look for a take down. This will end up being a major mistake, as Silva will likely turn the tables and either end up on top— a dangerous position for Brenneman— or attacking with submissions.
The Brazilian prospect is a serious threat in the welterweight division and will prove that he’s no joke as he decimates Brenneman tonight with either another TKO or submission win.
UFC on FX 3 takes place tonight from South Florida with an exciting night of fights. Headlining will be a flyweight semifinal in the tournament which will crown the first ever champion in that weight division.Ian McCall meets Demetrious Johnson in a re…
UFC on FX 3 takes place tonight from South Florida with an exciting night of fights. Headlining will be a flyweight semifinal in the tournament which will crown the first ever champion in that weight division.
Ian McCall meets Demetrious Johnson in a rematch, with the winner fighting Joseph Benavidez later this year for the belt. The first fight was extremely close, with it ending in a draw.
Also on the card will be top Brazilian prospect Erick Silva taking on tough-as-nails Charlie Brenneman. Silva looks to erase the memory of a controversial DQ loss he experienced in his latest outing against Carlo Prater.
Here are some predictions you can take to the bank for tonight’s event.
UFC on FX 3 features some great up and coming talent as well as a main event that is sure to bring the house down. Ian McCall and Demetrious Johnson met earlier this year as one half of a tournament to crown the first flyweight champion. Due to some ca…
UFC on FX 3 features some great up and coming talent as well as a main event that is sure to bring the house down. Ian McCall and Demetrious Johnson met earlier this year as one half of a tournament to crown the first flyweight champion. Due to some calculating errors on the part of the Australian commission, the fight ended in controversy and a winner was not decided.
Tonight’s winner will face Joseph Benavidez later this year for the title.
Official Card
Facebook
Jake Hecht vs Sean Pierson
Henry Martinez vs Bernardo Magalhaes
Fuel TV
Buddy Roberts vs Caio Magalhaes
Tim Means vs Justin Salas
Dustin Pague vs Jared Papazian
Leonard Garcia vs Matt Grice
Seth Baczynski vs Lance Benoist
Mike Pierce vs Carlos Eduardo Rocha
FX
Eddie Wineland vs Scott Jorgensen
Mike Pyle vs Josh Neer
Erick Silva vs Charlie Brenneman
Demetrious Johnson vs Ian McCall
The Facebook portion of the card starts at 5:00 p.m. ET/2:00 p.m. PT. The Fuel TV card begins at 6:00 p.m. ET/3:00 p.m. PT. The main card airs on FX at 9:00 p.m. ET/6:00 p.m. PT.
Be sure to join Bleacher Report for a live discussion of the event.
This Friday, Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall will meet at UFC on FX 3 in a rematch to determine which flyweight will meet Joseph Benavidez in the UFC’s first ever 125-pound title fight. In their first meeting, Johnson was incorrectly named the w…
This Friday, Demetrious Johnson and Ian McCall will meet at UFC on FX 3 in a rematch to determine which flyweight will meet Joseph Benavidez in the UFC’s first ever 125-pound title fight. In their first meeting, Johnson was incorrectly named the winner over McCall until it was discovered the bout had actually been scored a draw.
Once UFC on FX 3 is underway from the Bank Atlantic Center in Sunrise, Fla., Bleacher Report will provide live results below and play-by-play coverage on the following pages of this slideshow.
Erick Silva may be one of the premiere prospects in the welterweight division, yet the viability of his overall MMA game in the UFC remains a mystery. His UFC performances have been impressive and one-sided, but we haven’t seen his full range of …
Erick Silva may be one of the premiere prospects in the welterweight division, yet the viability of his overall MMA game in the UFC remains a mystery.
His UFC performances have been impressive and one-sided, but we haven’t seen his full range of skills.
In fact, our perception of Silva is very limited: His bouts within the Octagon have lasted a combined one minute. That’s not enough time to assess the nuances of his MMA game.
He was able to quickly vanquish his meager foes with punches—disregarding his gross disqualification loss. We know the magnitude of his punching power, and that’s about it.
How’s his ground game?
His waist dons two belts that may speak to his ground skills: a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a black belt in Judo. But credentials don’t necessarily equal success in the Octagon.
Charlie Brenneman will be the wrestler to illuminate Silva’s ground work, either in a flattering or ugly light. We’ll see if he can pass the imminent “wrestler test.”
Judo practitioners often possess stellar takedown defense. More often than not, Silva has been able to dictate where his fights take place. But amongst the most talented pool of fighters in the world, his takedown defense will be given its most serious test yet.
Since he’s destroyed his sub-par opponents with such haste, his cardio is a mystery too.
Brenneman, a grinding wrestler, figures to test the depth of Silva’s gas tank. The Brazilian juggernaut swings ferociously, seeking instant victory with every punch. That torrid pace might not be sustainable throughout three rounds against a hardened wrestler.
It also remains to be seen if Silva’s striking arsenal is well-rounded. Thus far, he’s exclusively relied on his monstrous punches to sink his foes.
How’s his clinch game? And his kicks?
Silva entered the UFC with gaudy expectations, and he’s lived up to them. But in doing so, he’s used only one aspect of his MMA game—his punches.
His overall prowess remains a mystery to UFC fans.
McCall vs. Johnson Five years ago, I wasn’t sure whether the UFC audience would ever evolve to the level where a fight between 125 pounders could headline a card. On Friday night, we’ll find out.
McCall vs. Johnson
Five years ago, I wasn’t sure whether the UFC audience would ever evolve to the level where a fight between 125 pounders could headline a card. On Friday night, we’ll find out if we’ve reached that point. This fight has every storyline needed to sell a main event. Demetrius Johnson and Ian McCall are two of the best fighters in the world at their weight. They fought in March on the UFC on FX 2 card and battled to one of the most bizarre results in UFC history. The fight was announced a split decision victory for Johnson but upon reexamination of the cards after the fight, someone was outed as not having the first grade math skills to add up the judges scorecards. The fight had actually been scored a draw. Had everyone’s math skills been in order at the end of the fight, that result would have resulted in a sudden victory fourth round. Instead, we get a rematch to determine who moves on to face Joseph Benavidez for the right to be the first ever 125 pound champion in UFC history. I’m sure the fourth round in March would have been exciting television but three more rounds between these two can’t be considered anything other than a win for the fans.
In so many ways, these fighters are startlingly similar. Both have wrestling backgrounds and are explosive athletes. Both have used that explosive athleticism to develop excellent striking skills. Both move fluidly through transitions in all positions and neither is easy to contain for any period of time. The first fight was so even that it was nearly impossible to score. Johnson had a slight edge in the striking exchanges in the first round but McCall countered with two takedowns. Johnson managed to land a right hand that briefly staggered McCall and on my scorecard, I used that as a tiebreaker to give the first round to Johnson. The second round was where the judging ran into problems. If a 10-10 round was ever fought, that was it. But under the 10 point must system, someone has to win the round. I gave it to Johnson based on literally nothing other than a completely subjective feeling. The third round was the most dominant round for either fighter with McCall taking Johnson’s back and nearly finishing him with ground a pound. And this is where the 10 point must system went from being a problem to basically being a farce. If we follow the system exactly, that was a 10-9 round for McCall and based on my card, Johnson should win the fight. But that’s ridiculous because McCall was infinitely more dominant in the third than Johnson was in the second. So I, being a judging rebel, made the third round a 10-8 round for McCall so that it would be a draw, which is exactly what one of the judges at the event did. And I applaud him for it. Unfortunately, the person adding up his card apparently needs a calculator to handle two digit addition and we now find ourselves in this position.
According to Vegas, Johnson is a -150 favorite at the moment with McCall at +130. I’d like to know how they arrived at those lines. As far as I can see, this is a classic pick ‘em fight. These fighters are absurdly well-rounded with their strengths being in the same areas. I expect to see a similar fight to the one we saw in March. Johnson will be slightly better in the striking exchanges with McCall barely coming out ahead in the grappling. The only way either fighter will be able to gain a clear advantage is if McCall can get Johnson to the ground and somehow keep him there, which seems unlikely. If I start looking deeper for advantages, Matt Hume is one of the best coaches an in MMA. He has an entire three rounds of fight tape to study and develop a gameplan for Johnson to utilize. Team Oyama where McCall trains is a great camp but nobody other than Greg Jackson has the mind for the sport that Matt Hume has. Johnson will absolutely have the perfect strategy going into the fight. Whether or not he can execute it will be determined at fight time. Anyone willing to say that either fighter is a clear favorite didn’t watch the first fight closely enough. The only sure thing is that on Friday night, we will get a winner to face Joseph Benavidez for the title. But don’t be surprised if the outcome leaves fans calling for a trilogy.
Eddie Wineland vs. Scott Jorgensen
Both fighters will be looking to rebound from losses in their last UFC appearance in this battle to see who can earn their way back into title contention. Eddie Wineland has lost his last two fights to Urijah Faber and Joseph Benavidez while former WEC bantamweight champion Scott Jorgensen lost in his most recent fight against phenom Renan Barao.
Despite back to back losses, Wineland cannot be dismissed. Both of those fights were against the highest level of competition. Faber will be fighting for the interim 135 pound title in his next fight and Benavidez awaits the winner of the main event to determine the 125 pound champion. Wineland was competitive in both fights and while he lost decisively, he was not dominated. He greatly improved his wrestling going into the Faber fight and continued that improvement into the Benavidez fight. However, he was unable to translate his defensive wrestling into offensive attacks. He seemed so focused on sprawling and defending against takedowns that he was not nearly as aggressive with his striking as he had been in previous fights. Wineland is one of the better strikers in the division and needs to let his hands go if he is going to find success against Jorgensen. After his last two performances, he should be confident enough in his defensive wrestling to let his striking game flow knowing that his instincts will allow him to sprawl if Jorgensen shoots. For Wineland to earn the victory, he needs to combine the defensive ability he showed in his recent fights with the offensive ability that he has displayed throughout his career. If he can do that, his opponent could be in for a long night.
Jorgensen is also coming off a loss to a top tier fighter. Renan Barao will be fighting Urijah Faber in the aforementioned interim bantamweight title match. Losing to Barao is nothing to be ashamed of but if Jorgensen expects to get back into title contention, he needs to defeat Wineland. As a former champion, Jorgensen has all the skills to get back to that level and a win on Saturday night would be the first step in that direction. Jorgensen has an excellent collegiate wrestling background and has been successful putting most opponents on their backs although he did struggle with Barao. But the real improvement in his game in recent years has been in his striking and look for him to show off those skills against Wineland. Expect him to be willing to stand with Wineland for as long as he feels comfortable. If he begins to feel threatened or if Wineland starts to seize an advantage, that’s when we could see the takedowns come into play. Jorgensen should have an advantage in that area and if he can’t control the fight on the feet, he should be able to control it on the mat.
Jorgensen is the clear favorite going into this fight at -210 with Wineland at +175. That line seems about right as a victory for Wineland would definitely be an upset. But that doesn’t mean it can’t happen. Wineland will need to keep the fight standing and outstrike Jorgensen, which he is capable of doing. But if he shows the same tentative approach on the feet that he’s showed in recent fights, Jorgensen will pick him apart. And even if he brings his best striking into the cage, Jorgensen should be able to mix in some wrestling to work his way to victory.
Rising welterweight prospect Erick Silva will enter this evening’s bout the heavy favorite over veteran Charlie Brenneman.
