On Saturday night, Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares notched another submission victory, as he got Mike Massenzio in a heel hook in just over a minute at UFC 142.
With the win, Palhares moves to 6-1 in his last seven, and 14-3 overall in his career. Palhares has twice faced top contenders, as he dropped fights to Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt.
However, Palhares is now ready for another step up in competition.
Since his loss against Marquardt, Palhares has earned three straight wins, including two vicious leg lock victories.
Palhares shouldn’t fight a top five guy next. Someone like Yushin Okami or Chael Sonnen should be out of the question.
However, a guy like Alan Belcher would make for an outstanding matchup with Palhares.
Belcher and Palhares are both closely ranked in the middleweight division, and they both fall at about tenth in the UFC.
A fight between these two would be to see who should be entrenched as one of the top ten middleweights in the world, and who is ready to become a top contender.
Belcher is currently on a three fight win streak, with three finishes, and he is 5-1 with four finishes in his last six.
Belcher is a very well rounded fighter, but you can be sure if this fight were to happen, Belcher would look to keep it on the feet, and not leave a leg anywhere that could be grabbed.
Besides, Palhares has got to be running out of room for limbs on his mantle.
Tim McTiernan is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. For the latest news on everything MMA, follow me on twitter @TimMcTiernan.
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