Midnight Mania: The Second Roster Purge This Month!

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Welcome to Midnight Mania!

The ever-changing UFC roster has seen another update, its second purge in as many weeks. According to UFC Roster Tracker, four more athletes have been released from the promotion: Bryan Barberena, Philipe Lins, Carlos Candelario, and Josh Parisian. In addition, Joanne Wood has been removed from rankings eligibility after she retired following her UFC 299 victory over Maryna Moroz.

Barberena might be the biggest name of this batch of cuts. The 34 year old joined the roster in 2014 as a Lightweight but spent most of his career a 170 lbs. Notably, he handed Sage Northcutt his first loss, as well as putting on incredible scraps against the likes of Vicente Luque, Matt Brown, and Robbie Lawler. He’s lost four straight, however, including a bizarre 0-2 Middleweight run that saw him strangled by Gerald Meerschaert last weekend at UFC Vegas 88.

Lins also fought at UFC Vegas 88, but he won, defeating Ion Cutelaba via unanimous decision. The former PFL champion actually won four straight fights, so there are two possible options. On one hand, Lins could just be in negotiation with the promotion still and is ineligible to be ranked until he signs back with UFC. Conversely, Lins is well-paid for an unranked Light Heavyweight because of his PFL success, so perhaps UFC simply wasn’t willing to foot the “Monstro” bill any longer.

Like Wood, Parisian fought at UFC 299. Unfortunately, his bout versus hot prospect Robert Despaigne lasted just 18 seconds (watch it), and the knockout loss was his third defeat in a row. He ends his UFC career with a 2-5 record. Candelario’s run in the UFC was far shorter, as he went winless in two fights and missed weight in his sophomore performance.

Insomnia

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Midnight Music: Hip-hop, 1998

Sleep well Maniacs! More martial arts madness is always on the way.