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MasterChef

MasterChef's Joe Bastianich Blogs About Season Finale

By Joe Bastianich

09/05/2012 at 10:15 AM EDT

Joe Bastianich is a successful restaurateur, vineyard owner and author of the memoir Restaurant Man. He's also a judge on MasterChef, which challenges home cooks to prove they can cut it in top professional kitchens. Each week he's blogging season 3 of Fox's hit show, offering an insider's take on the competition.

This week's episode of MasterChef brings us one step closer to finding our next winner! Becky, Josh and Christine battled through part one of the finale and surprisingly it was our consummate frontrunner Becky who underperformed.

Putting yourself on a plate apparently isn't as easy as it looks – and I honestly thought this challenge was too simple for our top three.

For Becky to end her time here over a horribly butchered filet of fish is something that still shocks me. I'll never understand why she didn't choose something she knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that she could ace – a dumb move for such a smart girl. I would have chosen something I could have prepared drunk or in my sleep and still executed to perfection. This challenge was meant for playing it safe! Prepare something within in your repertoire – and nail it! Her failure here was a prime example of overconfidence, which can be a killer.



Truthfully, I would not shed too many tears for Becky – she doesn't really need to win. This young lady takes to a professional kitchen like a duck to water. If she truly wants this life, she's got it. Missing out on $250,000 and a cookbook deal is tough to swallow, but out of all our home cooks, she is certainly the best candidate to make the most out of Gordon Ramsey's generous offer.

MasterChef's final three contestants

Greg Gayne / FOX

There was no question that Josh outperformed the women in the elimination round. If he cooks this way in the finale, Christine is in trouble. But Josh is no slam-dunk. We've seen our share of bipolar performances from him, so next week's winner is very much up in the air. He's a bit of risk taker, and sometimes it pans out – as evidenced by his dish this week – and sometimes it doesn't (mango on Graham's white tune dish?).

Christine has shown more consistency in her cookery and has also wowed us many times. They may have different strengths, but talent-wise they are on equal footing.

It's hard to believe we are wrapping up yet another stellar season! Only one can emerge victorious. Who is it going to be, Christine or Josh? Thanks for reading and don't miss the season 3 finale Monday (9 p.m. ET) on Fox!