On Thursday night, X Factor 2012 came to an exciting but predictable conclusion as the Season 3 winner was crowned.

It was all down to Fifth Harmony, Carly Rose Sonenclar and Tate Stevens. So who won X Factor 2012?

Tate Stevens, 37, walked away with the title. 13-year-old Carly Rose Sonenclar finished second and girl group Fifth Harmony came in third place.

At the start of the night, I got a little confused because it looked like we were watching a nightmare version of the MTV Music Award arrivals, but it was really just the X Factor producers trying something new. And by something new, I men a horribly fake and rehearsed red carpet event. The judges and finalists showed up in Escalades and Rolls Royces and were greeted and “interviewed” by Khloe and Mario.

The finalists actually sang on the red carpet (and by sing I mean lip sync terribly) as they made their way inside to the finale stage.

It was probably the worst opening to any TV show (finale or otherwise) in the history of the world. Ever. In the world. Ever. Ever.

The final three each performed a holiday song. Tate sang a song that I’ve already forgotten about. Fifth Harmony sang one of my favorite Christmas tunes “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home). And Carly Rose sang the age-inappropriate “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”

After several performances and judges montages, it’s time for some results. Mario and Khloe call the acts and their mentors to the stage to announce the third place winner. That spot gwent to Fifth Harmony. And the world can rest assured that the show was not staged and that Simon did not hand-pick the winner.

More performances and general irritation follows until it’s time for the final results. Carly and Tate return to the stage with Britney and L.A. and Mario announces that the winner of X Factor 2012 is Tate Stevens. He performs his swan song, cue glitter, the end.

I’m not surprised that Tate won. There was really no suspense since we already knew that he topped the leader board most of the season. For a split second, I thought maybe Fifth Harmony’s strong performances from the night before might have given us a shocker tonight, even if they just landed in second place. But everything turned out just as I and a lot of others expected.

What did you think of the outcome? Who did you want to win X Factor 2012?

Tonight one of three finalists will be named X Factor 2o12 champion before a packed house in Los Angeles.

Will it be Fifth Harmony, Carly Rose Sonenclar or Tate Stevens? What did you decide, America, following last night’s finale performances?

We will soon find out. But first you’ve got two-hours of special performances and guests, including One Direction and Pitbull. Oh, and one of the cheesiest openings in TV history.

The X Factor 2012 Finale Results

• Third Place: Fifth Harmony
• Second Place: Carly Rose Sonenclar
• The X Factor 2012 WINNER: Tate Stevens

There you have it, America. What do you think of the results?

This content is copyrighted by X Factor Network.