UFC Fight Night 56 was like from Brazil this past Saturday night with 10 scheduled bouts, and now with the night of fights behind us, let’s take a look at which UFC Fight Night 56 fighters we may no longer see compete inside the Octagon… ON THE CHOPPING BLOCK: Charlie Brenneman I believe Charlie Brenneman is now truly done in the UFC, after going 0-3 in his second stint with the promotion. Once a solid prospect in the welterweight division, “The Spaniard” dropped consecutive fights in the first round to Erick Silva and Kyle Noke, respectively, which resulted in his release from the promotion. After receiving his pink slip, he made the move down to the lightweight division, where he put together a four fight winning streak that included three submission finishes, including an impressive Peruvian necktie. He earned another shot with the UFC, but came up short in his 155-pound Octagon debut, as he was dropped and submitted by Beneil Dariush in the very first round of action. He went into his next bout as a major underdog against Team Alpha Male’s Danny Castillo, however he successfully outwrestled Castillo and clearly won the first round. Unfortunately, things took an ugly turn in the second, as the very first punch Castillo threw just seconds into the round put Brenneman out cold, giving “Last Call” the best highlight-reel finish of his professional mixed martial arts career. After a pair of losses, he was given another shot at UFC Fight Night 56 in Brazil this past Saturday night, where he again came up short, being submitted by Brazilian fighter Leandro Silva towards the end of the very first round. I feel confident Brenneman will again be getting released from the promotion, and I feel this time he may call it a career and sail off into retirement. Wagner Silva Silva was a contestant on season three of The Ultimate Fighter: Brazil, where after defeating Joilton Santos via split decision in the elimination round, he was submitted by eventual winner Warlley Alves in the semi-finals. After the show wrapped up, he made his Octagon debut with an official professional mixed martial arts record of 3-0, and he took on fellow TUF 3 cast member and team-mate Ricardo Abreu, who he lost to via rear naked choke submission in the second round of action. Silva is still very raw and I think he needs time away from the UFC to not only improve on his skills, but also gain some cage time in. Dropping his last fight to Colby Covingon at this past Saturday night’s UFC Fight Night 56 in his native Brazil made it two consecutive defeats for Silva, and I think that will be enough to earn him a pink slip. He was coming off a fight he was submitted in and was taking on an undefeated fighter who won his last fight by having his opponent tap to strikes, so it seems perhaps the UFC just wanted to send him packing, while simultaneously giving Covington another win and more Octagon experience. I won’t be surprised if the UFC gives Silva one final crack on another Brazil card, but I think it’s highly likely he will soon be receiving his walking papers.
