Charles Johnson's Scottish Twister No Fluke, He Hits It Weekly

Charles Johnson says the Scottish twister submission he used to finish Eduardo Henrique at UFC 330 is a move he lands "once or twice a week" in the gym, not a lucky scramble that happened to land.

Johnson (20-9) was slated to face Jose Ochoa at UFC 330 in Philadelphia, but Ochoa pulled out after the death of his Chute Boxe teammate Allan Nascimento. Eduardo Henrique stepped in on three days' notice, and the flyweight bout shifted to a catchweight. Henrique held his own on the feet early, but Johnson took over on the ground in the third round. As Henrique tried to reverse a takedown, Johnson adjusted into the back-twisting Scottish twister and got the tap, earning a post-fight bonus for the finish.

It was only the second Scottish twister finish in UFC history, coming two months after Murtazali Magomedov used the same submission to beat Melsik Baghdasaryan in June.

How Charles Johnson Learned the Scottish Twister

Charles Johnson credited former Bellator MMA bantamweight champion Patrick "Patchy" Mix for teaching him the move. "Patchy Mix actually showed me that move, so I'm going to give him his flowers, man. He showed it to me about a year and a half ago," Johnson said at the UFC 330 post-fight press conference. Johnson said he drills it constantly, telling reporters, "I hit that at least once or twice a week on people in practice, so it's just about getting there." That kind of repetition is why the finish looked so clean under lights, Johnson had clearly hit that exact sequence dozens of times on training partners before he ever got there in a live fight.

What This Means for Charles Johnson's Flyweight Run

Charles Johnson has been one of the busiest men in the UFC's flyweight division, having already fought four times this year, but he's also been inconsistent, going through stretches of wins and losses over his last six outings. A finish this spectacular, on short notice against a replacement opponent, is the kind of result that can reset how bookmakers and matchmakers view him heading into his next assignment. Submission specialists who show a genuine, repeatable setup rather than a one-off scramble tend to see their finishing odds shorten in future fights, since oddsmakers and bettors start pricing in the live threat of a fight-ending sequence rather than just grinding out rounds. If Johnson keeps drilling this look and mixing it into his grappling exchanges, expect his next line to reflect a slightly higher finish probability than his recent form alone would suggest.

Frequently Asked Questions

How did Charles Johnson finish Eduardo Henrique at UFC 330?

Charles Johnson submitted Eduardo Henrique with a Scottish twister in the third round at UFC 330 after Henrique tried to reverse a takedown.

Who taught Charles Johnson the Scottish twister submission?

Charles Johnson said former Bellator MMA bantamweight champion Patrick 'Patchy' Mix taught him the Scottish twister about a year and a half before he used it at UFC 330.

Why did Eduardo Henrique replace Jose Ochoa at UFC 330?

Jose Ochoa withdrew from his scheduled UFC 330 bout with Charles Johnson after the death of his Chute Boxe teammate Allan Nascimento, and Eduardo Henrique stepped in on three days' notice.