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Rousimar Palhares Expected To Sign With The UFC

Posted by Kris Karkoski on Jan 24, 2008 at 4:07 pm ET4 Comments

Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares was the center of attention at the Fury FC show on December 7th of last year. In fact, the stakes were much higher than many casual fans who didn’t watch the event may have known. On the line was the Fury FC Middleweight championship, the potential for a Brazilian Top Team vs. Chute Box showdown in the Final, a bet between Mario Sperry of BTT and Rudimar of Chute Box for a Toyota Land Cruiser SUV, and the pride and respect gained from defeating a rival camp in the heart of Brazil. Most importantly, the event was being streamed live by ProElite and was a chance for “Toquinho” to show fans worldwide of his dominance in the Brazilian MMA scene. He did not disappoint.

Palhares crushed the competition by showcasing a submission grappling game that looked eerily familiar to that of fellow Brazilian Paulo Filho. “Toquinho” looked as if he had broken Fabio Negao’s leg or ankle with a brutal ankle or leg lock in his first match of the night. He backed up that performance by crushing Daniel Acacio of Chute Box with a nearly identical performance. With strong physical attributes and a great jiu-jitsu base, he could prove to be the next Paulo Filho type submission grappler. Submission technique coupled with absolute power can never be counted out of a fight. Ask Chael Sonnen.

News from Sherdog has hinted that the UFC is expected to sign the 7-1 Middleweight prospect to help bolster a weak talent pool in the division. Palhares could very well be an answer to the question as to who can ascend to the top and actually give the top spots a run for their money. Although he only has 8 fights professionally, “Toquinho” has displayed some awesome power and skill. It wouldn’t be surprising to see Palhares run through some of the striking talent in the division with ease.

Although we haven’t seen him in the cage yet, it should be noted that “Toquinho” will be a force in the division if he comes to the UFC. The Middleweight division in the UFC right now is fairly weak toward the bottom, and Palhares could move quickly through the ranks before running into contender talent like Okami or Franklin. One thing is for certain, I will be watching Palhares closely. He was too impressive in his Fury FC wins to discount his skills.

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4 Comments »

  • johnboy says:

    never heard of this guy leland but im sold he sounds good an i would welcome any good middle weight into the ufc at the moment, or before to long we will be seeing silva an hendo 6 or silva an franklin 10 haha

  • This is one guy that I never thought the UFC was going to get for a couple of reasons. ProElite streamed Fury FC, which hinted to the possibility that they were buying out Fury FC. I figured he’d end up fighting on an EliteXC card before too long. Looks like he may have jumped ship to go to the UFC.

    Now that the rumors may come true, check out some of the video if you can find it on Palhares. He absolutely crushed Negao. I believe he broke his leg or ankle with the lock, it was devastating. Acacio power bombed a guy in his fight, and nearly put the guy in a coma from what it seemed like. It set up a great fight in the final of BTT vs. Chute Box with the bet in play.

    Palhares dominated Acacio, which was shocking, and it was in the same fashion as Negao. Unbelievable skill, I must say that I was impressed.

  • Michaelthebox says:

    Just like to correct one thing, the bottom levels of MW are NOT weak in the UFC. The opposite is true, actually. The UFC is so desperate to develop top MW fighters, the lower levels are chock full of good talent.

  • [...] Recently-signed Rousimar Palhares will make his UFC debut against Ivan Salaverry at UFC 84 according to a report by Sherdog. [...]

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