Rousimar Palhares Record, Net Worth, Weight, Age & More!

Who Is Rousimar Palhares?

Born February 20, 1980, Rousimar Palhares is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and professional mixed martial artist. He has  been a professional MMA competitor since 2006, and has fought in organizations such as the UFC, KSW, and the World Series of Fighting. He got his nickname “Toquinho” which means little tree stump, as his short, stocky, and muscular build has substantially played to his advantage in grappling for MMA. 11 of his 15 submission wins have been leg locks, and he tends to be known for not releasing submission hold after his opponent taps or the referee calls a stop to the bout. This has caused him to be released from both the UFC and World Series of Fighting.

Who Is Rousimar Palhares?

Born February 20, 1980, Rousimar Palhares is a Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt and professional mixed martial artist. He has  been a professional MMA competitor since 2006, and has fought in organizations such as the UFC, KSW, and the World Series of Fighting. He got his nickname “Toquinho” which means little tree stump, as his short, stocky, and muscular build has substantially played to his advantage in grappling for MMA. 11 of his 15 submission wins have been leg locks, and he tends to be known for not releasing submission hold after his opponent taps or the referee calls a stop to the bout. This has caused him to be released from both the UFC and World Series of Fighting.

What this article covers:

• Who Is Rousimar Palhares?
• How Old Is Rousimar Palhares?
• How Much Is Rousimar Palhares Worth?
• Rousimar Palhares Fight List
• Rousimar Palhares Best Fight of All Time
• Rousimar Palhares Record

The Art of Devastating Heel Hooks by Rousimar Palhares is your ticket to becoming a feared leg locker!

Palhares grew up in a poverty stricken area of the Brazilian countryside. He worked in the fields at a young age to help support his family and recalls numerous times where there was not enough food for everyone as he was growing up. He was forced to leave the shanty he had been living in and went to live under a bridge in a tent.

By the age of 15 Palhares began training Jiu Jitsu, and eventually moved to Rio de Janeiro to compete professionally. Palhares earned his Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt under Murito Bustamante and Bebeo Duarte. Many experts have described Palhares as one of the most naturally gifted grapplers of modern time.

Palhares came to the US for his first professional competition outside of Brazil for UFC 84. He is especially known for his success with heel hook and knee bars, and took 2nd place in 2011 ADCC at 88-kg after defeating his first three opponents with leg locks and then losing to Andre Galvao by points in the final.

The Total Kneebar Tutorial by Dave Porter will have you utilizing this deceptively simple leg lock in no time!

How Old Is Rousimar Palhares?

Born February 20, 1980, Rousimar Palhares is 41 years old.

Rousimar Palhares Family

Rousimar Palhares was born to mother Francinete Palhares and father Robson Palhares. He is also one of nine siblings.

How Much Is Rousimar Palhares Worth?

Rousimar Palhares is worth approximately $16 Million.

How Tall Is Rousimar Palhares?

Rousimar palhares stands at 5 feet and 8 inches tall.

How Much Does Rousimar Palhares Weigh?

As he currently fights in the Welterweight division, Rousimar Palhares weighs approximately 170 pounds.

Rousimar Palhares Fight List

At UFC 88, Palhares fought against Dan Henderson, who was a former PRIDE Middleweight &Welterweight Champion. Palhares lost this fight by unanimous decision, resulting in his first loss in the UFC. However, Palhares quickly recovered from this loss, coming back to defeat UFC veteran Jeremy Horn by unanimous decision at UFC 93.

Making his way to The Ultimate Fighter, Palhares’s next fight was supposed to be against Alessio Sakara in 2009 on The Ultimate Fighter 10 Finale, however Sakara had to withdraw from the fight due to an injury he suffered during training. Instead Palhares fought Lucio Linhares at UFC 107 for his next fight, and won by heel hook submission.

Palhares defeated Tomasz Drwal at UFC 111 with a heel hook 45 seconds into the first round. However, Palhares did not let go of the submission after both his opponent had tapped and the referee stopped the first, and he was suspended for 90 days.

Next Palhares was expected to fight Nate Marquardt at UFC 118 in August 2010, but the fight was moved to headline at UFC Fight Night 22 as the headline fight for that event was canceled due to fighter injuries. Palhares was defeated by Marquardt by TKO in the first round. During this fight, Palhares attempted to secure a leg lock on the ground but Marquardt was able to slip out of it. Palhares claimed that Marquardt had greased his leg prior to the fight, allowing Marquardt to slip out of the submission and catch Palhares off guard to finish the fight with a ground and pound. After investigation, it was determined that Marquardt's leg was not greased.

In 2011 at UFC Live: Sanchez vs Kampmann, Palhares was expected to face Alexandre Ferreira. However, prior to the fight Ferreira was dismissed from his training camp due to a lack of commitment. Later it came out that Ferreira had lost family and friends during a flood in Brazil, leaving him in no condition to fight so the fight was cancelled. Ferreira was replaced by David Branch, who Palhares defeated with a kneebar submission in the second round.

The rescheduling of palhares vs Ferreira at UFC 134 in August 2011, however Ferreira was forced to pull out of the fight again, this time due to an injury. Ferreira was replaced by Dan Miller, who Palhares defeated by unanimous decision. 

At UFC 142 in January 2012, Palhares faced Mike Massenzio. He defeated Massenzio with a heel hook in the first round, earning his second Submission of the Night bonus.

Palhares’s last fight in the UFC occurred at UFC Fight NIght 29 against Mike Pierce in 2013. Palhares won the bout with a heel hook submission just 31 seconds into the first round. However, Palhares was denied the Submission of the night award due to unsportsmanlike conduct, after continuing to crank the submission after the referee stopped the fight. Pierce had tapped a total of 8 times without a response from Palhares. Later in an interview with Dana White, he announced that Palhares was to be dropped from the UFC.

After Palhares left the UFC he went on to fight for the World Series of Fighting. After just a few fights, Palhares was again cranking submissions after referee stoppages, and was stripped of his title and suspended from the WSOF indefinitely.

Palhares went on to fight in several Polish, Italian, and Russian promotions. Most recently, Palhares signed a contract with Taura MMA. He was supposed to have his debut in September 2020 against Sean Loeffler, however the fight was rescheduled for October and then Loeffler pulled out of the fight the week before. He was replaced by Anthony Gordillo, but Gordillo was unable to leave his hometown due to restrictions from COVID-19. Palhares’s contract with Taura MMA is still active, however he has yet to make his debut.

Rousimar Palhares Best Fight Of All Time

Rousimar Palhares’s best fight of all time is widely considered to be his fight against Jake fields in 2015 at WSOF 22. Shields was doing well against Palhares for the majority of the fight, but Palhares turned the tables with a takedown in the second round followed by a vicious ground and pound. After an exciting back and forth exchange, Palhares won by submission in the third round. This was one of the biggest names Palhares had fought to date, and was able to submit a successful Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt.

Who Did Rousimar Palhares Lose To?

In the UFC Rousimar Palhares has lost to Dan Henderson, Nate Marquardt, Alan Belcher, and Hector Lombard.

In other fight promotions Palhares has lost to Leandro Silva, Arthur Cesar Lacintho, Emil Weber Meek, Michal Materla, Aliaskhab Khizriev, and Gregory Kichigin.

Rousimar Palhares Record

Rousimar Palhares has a professional MMA record of 19-10 with 1 draw.

Rousimar Palhares Injuries

There are no documented injuries for Rousimar Palhares.

Is Rousimar Palhares Retired?

Rousimar Palhares is not retired, and currently has an active contract to compete in the Welterweight Division of Taura MMA.

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