The 3 stars of ‘UFC on FOX 17: Dos Anjos vs. Cerrone 2' in Orlando

Rafael dos Anjos and Donald Cerrone

The UFC staged 41 events in 2015, and during that time, hundreds of fighters entered and exited the octagon.

While pre-fight hype is an enjoyable aspect of the sport, it’s ultimately the in-cage performances that speak most to fans. For the majority of fighters, the opportunity to present their skills to the world only comes along a few times per year.

A total of 26 fighters got the chance on Saturday as part of UFC on FOX 17 in Orlando. Now that the UFC on FOX 17 is in the books, it’s time to commence MMAjunkie’s “Three Stars” ceremony.

* * * *

Third Star: Nate Marquardt

With a 1-5 record in his past six fights prior to the event, many believed Nate Marquardt’s (34-15-2 MMA, 12-8 UFC) middleweight bout with C.B. Dollaway (15-8 MMA, 9-8 UFC) might be his last to take place inside the octagon.

Marquardt granted himself a stay for at least one or two more fights, though, because he knocked Dollaway out with the perfect punch in the second round for his first successful performance since June 2014.

“The Great” was the largest betting underdog on the card according to most oddsmakers. That seemed appropriate given Marquardt’s recent showings. He arrived to Orlando on the top of his game, though, and proved yet again it’s not always about who is the best fighter, but rather which athlete shows up in the best form when it matters most.

Second Star: Nate Diaz

Nate Diaz (18-10 MMA, 13-8 UFC) couldn’t have picked a better time to turn in the finest performance of his career. He earned “Fight of the Night” honors for his unanimous decision victory over Michael Johnson (16-10 MMA, 8-6 UFC) and now Diaz is back amongst the big names at play in the lightweight division.

After a first round in which he was forced to fend off Johnson’s aggression, Diaz shifted his attack into high gear as the fight wore on and rapidly gained in confidence. Within minutes Diaz was taunting Johnson in classic fashion and turned the fight in his favor.

Johnson was unable to keep up with Diaz once he found his rhythm and at the end of 15 minutes it was clear “The Ultimate Fighter 5” winner had done enough to pick up his first victory since November 2013.

It was arguably Diaz’s best performance under the UFC banner and one that proved what he’s truly capable when motivated and prepared for competition. Moreover, a Diaz that’s winning provides endless moments of entertainment, as displayed in his post-fight diatribe aimed at UFC featherweight champ Conor McGregor.

First Star: Rafael dos Anjos

Rafael dos Anjos (25-7 MMA, 14-5 UFC) is putting the building blocks in place for a long and prestigious UFC lightweight title reign. His 66-second TKO of Donald Cerrone (28-7 MMA, 15-4 UFC) was among the best on a growing resume of impressive wins.

Dos Anjos needed little time to get to work before he hammered Cerrone with a hard liver shot early in the fight. “Cowboy” was unable to recover from the blow and dos Anjos left the octagon with the fastest stoppage victory in 155-pound title fight history.

Although dos Anjos held a previous win over Cerrone from 2013, many believed the Brazilian was in for a much tougher contest the second time around. Cerrone entered the fight on an eight-fight UFC winning streak, but all that success meant nothing to dos Anjos and he actually finished the job much quicker than the original encounter.

For complete coverage of UFC on FOX 17, check out the UFC Events section of the site.