UFC, Bellator and WSOF: 5 Stars of the Night

Saturday was a busy night if you are an MMA fan. Between UFC 180, Bellator 131 and WSOF 15, there were enough fights to last the normal fan a month or two.

In the UFC, Fabricio Werdum overcame a slow start to earn a TKO stoppage over Mark Hunt in the second round for the interim heavyweight strap. It was a fun fight that looked like Hunt would succeed early on, until Werdum scored a big knee and follow-up shots.

In Bellator, bitter rivals Tito Ortiz and Stephan Bonnar participated in a sluggish, underwhelming brawl that saw Ortiz take a split decision. It was a fight that was built up more on animosity than it was on the potential for an all-time classic.

And finally in WSOF, three champions were victorious in their respective bouts, as Dave Branch, Justin Gaethje and Jessica Aguilar all scored victories in the triple main event. They solidified themselves as top fighters in their divisions with their respective wins.

Who were the five stars that came out of this trifecta of big-time shows? Let's examine right now.

5. Joe Schilling

Courtesy of Bellator MMA

Let's face it, when Bellator announced Melvin Manhoef vs. Joe Schilling, we weren't expecting an MMA fight. We were expecting a kickboxing match with four-ounce gloves.

That's exactly what we got.

Though favored by many, including myself, Manhoef was unable to crack through the tough chin of Schilling, who battled out of a stick spot in the first round. He held off until the second round, where Manhoef looked gassed and Schilling looked to score big.

Score big he did, as Schilling hit Manhoef with a two-punch combo that had Manhoef in another dimension before he hit the mat. It was the best knockout of the night in Bellator, which is big considering all but one of the main card bouts ended via strikes.

The win may not propel Schilling into the top of the MMA middleweight rankings, but it did potentially unseat Manhoef as the next middleweight title challenger in the company. Regardless, Schilling's performance in the cage is good enough to grab him the fifth star on the night.

4. Dave Branch

Courtesy of World Series of Fighting

Lost among the fray that was the UFC and Bellator was WSOF, a card that boasted two (previously three) title bouts. Among those title bouts was a middleweight main event, pitting champion Dave Branch against former UFC title challenger Yushin Okami.

Despite being the champion and making drastic improvements from his UFC days, Branch was an underdog coming into this fight. Many people, including myself, thought Okami would cash in one of his typical grinding nights and walk away with Branch's belt.

That did not happen.

Early on, it looked like our premonitions would be true, as Okami looked to tire and grind away at Branch. However, Branch got stronger as the bout went on, getting comfortable on the feet and landing big shots at will.

Finally, in the championship rounds, Branch started crushing Okami with his right hand. That right hand eventually downed the Japanese contender, allowing Branch to swoop in and finish him off.

It was his biggest win to date and now puts him in an interesting spot among the middleweight ranks.

3. Kelvin Gastelum

Christian Palma/Associated Press

Speaking of biggest tests to date, Kelvin Gastelum, the unlikely winner of Season 17 of The Ultimate Fighter, took a co-main event slot of a big pay-per-view event against his most credible opponent to date in Jake Ellenberger and passed with flying colors.

Although many people thought Gastelum could take this fight, he did it quicker and more dominantly than they could imagine. He steamrolled through Ellenberger's defenses, eventually tapping him with a picture-perfect rear-naked choke.

His unlikely run to the top continues. Every time we see him, he looks better and better, which will continue to warrant him big fights on big cards.

He is still undefeated and continues to add big names to his trophy case. This win over Ellenberger may give him a top-10 opponent in his next bout.

2. Will Brooks

Courtesy of Bellator MMA

Lost among the circus that was Tito Ortiz-Stephan Bonnar was Will Brooks-Michael Chandler, a fight that actually had meaning in the progress of a Bellator division. With the lightweight title up for grabs, Brooks cashed in one of his best—if not the best—performance to date.

Brooks, who is often seen as a one-dimensional wrestler, continued to send Chandler's stock on a downward spiral, as he not only outgrappled Chandler, but outstruck him as well. He looked on his way to a potential decision win when a bizarre stoppage halted the bout.

Brooks cracked Chandler with a big punch coming out of a scramble, causing Chandler to make some weird gesture that suggested he was protesting or wanted a break in the action. Brooks pounced, landing big shots that led the referee to call the bout.

Chandler had no idea what happened, but Brooks had scored the stoppage win. That win not only gave Brooks closure on his first win against the former Bellator champion, but allowed him to walk home the undisputed Bellator Lightweight Champion.

1. Fabricio Werdum

Christian Palma/Associated Press

The top star of the night not only overcame adversity early on in his fight, but came out of said fight with a giant prize to add to his trophy case.

Fabricio Werdum was being handled on the feet early on in his bout with Mark Hunt, who was outstriking the Brazilian and even spent some time landing strikes from top position on the ground. It appeared that if Werdum didn't get Hunt down, he was in for a long night of eating power shots and getting thrown to the canvas.

A precise knee ended that notion.

Werdum timed a beautiful knee on the jaw of Hunt that dropped the K-1 legend. He quickly scrambled on top of Hunt and began landing ground-and-pound, which forced the ref to wave off the fight and made Werdum the heavyweight champ of the UFC.

Although a Hunt-Cain Velasquez title unification would do well, considering Hunt's popularity and Cinderella story, Velasquez-Werdum is definitely the bigger seller, especially in Latin America. When Velasquez heals up, another visit to Mexico or another large Latin American market could be in the books for what could be a massive event for the UFC.