Rousimar Palhares: People Say I’m A Dirty Fighter Because They Don’t Know Me

 

Already scheduled for a World Series of Fighting (WSOF) welterweight title shot without even fighting for the promotion, UFC castoff Rousimar Palhares has garnered a reputation as arguably the sport’s most notorious fighter.

Heading into tomorrow night’s (Sat., March 29, 2014) bout with titleholder Steve Carl, Palhares was forced to fly from his native Brazil to Las Vegas to submit to a drug screen for the Nevada Athletic Commission. He may have been suspended for elevated testosterone following his UFC on FX 6 loss to Hector Lombard, but this time, “Toquinho” passed.

Talking to AXS TV’s “Inside MMA” on the eve of his big redemption fight, the polarizing ground wizard said that people who think he’s simply a bad guy don’t really know the real Palhares:

“People perceive me as a dirty fighter, but that’s not true. I think that people say that because they don’t know me. But if they knew who I am, I think they’d think differently. Everything that’s happened to me has been a school that I wouldn’t change for anything. You have to learn in life, and if I had not committed an error, I would not have learned a lesson.”

Palhares is of course talking about his brutal heel hook submission of Mike Pierce at last October’s UFC Fight Night 29, a hold which “Toquinho” held onto for too long, earning him a lifetime ban from the UFC.

And while Palhares may only want people to know him for the man he really is, Carl isn’t buying into that philosophy quite yet. When asked if he thought if Palhares was a dirty fighter, Carl was quick with his reply:

“To a certain degree, yes. This isn’t just something that’s happened a couple times; you know, it’s happened dozens of times in grappling tournaments also. He’s a really nice guy; but, that doesn’t mean that there isn’t something wrong.”

Carl had a similarly negative stance about Palhares’ legitimacy as a true title contender:

“He absolutely does not deserve a title fight, he’s 1-2 in his last three fights, he’s coming off two suspensions back-to-back, but; his what earns him the title shot, is all the controversy that surrounds him.”

WSOF President Ray Sefo was on hand to declare that Palhares deserves his shot at redemption:

“We’ve actually talked to him and his team assures us. Obviously there are issues, but when you look at his history, he hasn’t really permanently hurt anybody. He’s one of the best 170-pounders in the world, and he’s fought some big names. Again, we’re the second chance state here in Nevada, so for us, this is his second chance, and I hope he understands that also.”

That’s an interesting point of view from the president, who might be singing a wholly different tune if Palhares pulls off another one of his well-documented transgressions at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Indeed it’s not Palhares’ second chance, but rather his fourth following the Pierce debacle, the Lombard suspension, and his initial 90-day suspension for cranking another heel hook on Tomasz Drwal at UFC 111 back in 2010.

What will Palhares do for his reputation this Saturday night? We’ll just have to wait and see.