Former UFC fighter Rousimar Palhares trained at Team Nogueira leading up to his welterweight debut against Mike Pierce, but prior to that, he was a mainstay at the Brazilian Top Team facility.
BTT coach/co-founder Murilo Bustamante is adding to t…
Former UFC fighter RousimarPalhares trained at Team Nogueira leading up to his welterweight debut against Mike Pierce, but prior to that, he was a mainstay at the Brazilian Top Team facility.
BTT coach/co-founder MuriloBustamante is adding to the public outrage against “Toquinho,” who was cut from the UFC for holding a heel hook long after Pierce tapped out at UFC Fight Night 29, slamming his former student in an interview with Fighters Only.
“I wouldn’t normally say anything because usually what happens inside Brazilian Top Team stays inside Brazilian Top Team. But Rousimar has been talking a lot of bulls–t about my team so I feel I am free to say what I think as well,” Bustamante said. “I can say this – nobody ever defended him as much as I did every time he made a mistake like this. In the beginning I thought it was because he was naive or had too much nervous energy during the fights. But then he caused a lot of incidents inside my academy during his camps and I changed my mind. I got tired of seeing how he hurts people so often when he is sparring, especially when he has a fight coming up. We used to argue every time it happened, so we argued a lot. That was a reason – together with his nonsense excuses every time he lost a fight – that our relationship started to get bitter. I actually hired a psychologist to help me with him but, as we have seen, it didn’t work.”
Palhares is generally viewed as one of the most polarizing figures in UFC history, being the only fighter in promotional history to be suspended twice by two different athletic commissions for holding onto a submission hold after the ref stopped the bout.
The first incident occurred against TomaszDrwal at UFC 111 in March 2010, with the second of course being his bout with Pierce from Wednesday.
These mental lapses or acts of malice, depending who is asked, are not just limited to the cage, as Palhares has been know to crank submissions a little too hard, for a little too long, on the grappling circuit as well.
His reputation was also recently tarnished when he tested positive for elevated levels of testosterone in a post-fight drug test in December, after getting knocked out by Hector Lombard at UFC on FX 6, per The MMA Report.
To make matters worse, Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney just told TMZ that his promotion has no interest in Palhares since “fighter safety is paramount to me and my team.”
Has this misstep with Pierce effectively ended Palhares‘ career as a professional fighter, or will a promotion eventually roll the dice on the embattled Brazilian grappler?
JohnHeinis is a Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report. He is also the MMA Editor for eDraft.com.
Last night’s instance of poor sportsmanship and judgment from Palhares wasn’t his first. As we’ve mentioned earlier today, Palhares was previously suspended by the UFC for doing the exact same thing to Tomasz Drwal back in 2010.
Despite initial reports that Palhares has received a lifetime ban from the organization, MMAFighting.com is reporting that Palhares has simply been “released.”
We’ll keep you up to date as this story continues to develop.
Last night’s instance of poor sportsmanship and judgment from Palhares wasn’t his first. As we’ve mentioned earlier today, Palhares was previously suspended by the UFC for doing the exact same thing to Tomasz Drwal back in 2010.
Despite initial reports that Palhares has received a lifetime ban from the organization, MMAFighting.com is reporting that Palhares has simply been “released.”
We’ll keep you up to date as this story continues to develop.
(Kim vs. Silva: The moment of impact, and the aftermath. / Photos via Getty)
I wouldn’t call yesterday’s UFC Fight Night event a great card, necessarily — the headlining bout was predictably slow, and the main card broadcast dragged in the middle thanks to the light-heavyweights. Still, there were enough violent, surprising, and awful moments at UFC Fight Night 29 to make it worth discussing. So let’s talk about the interesting stuff first, and work our way down to the crap.
Rousimar’s heel-hook was the only submission on the card, and would be worthy of a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus even if there were other subs to compete with. Instead, the UFC decided to withhold the SOTN bonus due to Palhares’s “unsportsmanlike conduct,” and UFC President Dana White claimed that Palhares would receive an additional punishment for his actions. Palhares previously received a 90-day slap on the wrist** for holding a heel-hook against Tomasz Drwal at UFC 111. Maybe the next punishment will be severe enough for him to actually pay attention.
* By the way, when Palhares showed up in the cage, he almost looked like the old Palhares again. Ah, the miracle of rehydration.
(Kim vs. Silva: The moment of impact, and the aftermath. / Photos via Getty)
I wouldn’t call yesterday’s UFC Fight Night event a great card, necessarily — the headlining bout was predictably slow, and the main card broadcast dragged in the middle thanks to the light-heavyweights. Still, there were enough violent, surprising, and awful moments at UFC Fight Night 29 to make it worth discussing. So let’s talk about the interesting stuff first, and work our way down to the crap.
Rousimar’s heel-hook was the only submission on the card, and would be worthy of a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus even if there were other subs to compete with. Instead, the UFC decided to withhold the SOTN bonus due to Palhares’s “unsportsmanlike conduct,” and UFC President Dana White claimed that Palhares would receive an additional punishment for his actions. Palhares previously received a 90-day slap on the wrist** for holding a heel-hook against Tomasz Drwal at UFC 111. Maybe the next punishment will be severe enough for him to actually pay attention.
* By the way, when Palhares showed up in the cage, he almost looked like the old Palhares again. Ah, the miracle of rehydration.
While Palhares’s victory was the most savage stoppage on the card, it certainly wasn’t the most surprising. That honor goes to Dong Hyun Kim, who was getting soundly lit up by Erick Silva until Kim ended the fight with a blazing overhand left in round two. Of course, this fight wasn’t without controversy either. Earlier in the round, Kim blatantly grabbed the fence to avoid being taken to the mat by Silva. The ref warned him about it — but didn’t pause the action or deduct a point — and the next thing you know, DHK uncorked a one-hitter quitter. Basically, it was the greatest use of an illegal fence grab since Jose Aldo did the exact same thing against Chad Mendes at UFC 142. All together, now…”YOU SHOULD ALWAYS CHEAT IN AN MMA FIGHT.” Kim is now on a three-fight win streak in the welterweight division, and earned the first Knockout of the Night bonus of his UFC career.
So let’s talk about those light-heavyweights, huh? Thiago Silva managed to save his job by beating Matt Hamill via decision, but it wasn’t pretty. Hamill started aggressively (as he often does), before fading later in the fight (as he often does). To a large extent, you can credit that to Silva’s relentless leg kicks, which jolted Hamill around the cage and stole much of his mobility. By the end of round three, Hamill was just looking to be put out of his misery. Every leg kick from Silva had him stumbling around in a circle, and Hamill was too exhausted to even stay upright, leaning over at the waist several times with his head completely exposed to further abuse. Silva landed strikes at will, but couldn’t find the strength to deliver a merciful death-blow, which suggested that Silva might have been pretty gassed himself. When the final bell sounded, Thiago Silva had staved off the reaper of unemployment, and Hamill proved beyond a shadow of a doubt that he should have stayed retired.
Speaking of fighters who faded deep into the fight, Raphael Assuncao and T.J. Dillashaw earned UFC Fight Night 29′s Fight of the Night bonuses, despite the fact that the third round was eerily quiet, with both fighters (but especially Dillashaw) seemingly losing interest in attacking. Dillashaw started off as the aggressor both on the feet and on the mat, and managed to take the Brazilian’s back for a portion of the round. But Assuncao shifted the momentum in the second frame, landing more of his shots and bloodying the face of Dillashaw.
Just when Dillashaw should have picked up the pace in the decisive final round, he took his foot off the gas, steadily walking toward Assuncao but not really doing anything productive. Outside of a few counter-punches, Assuncao seemed to be cool with riding the clock out as well, which he did en route to a split-decision win. The crowd booed the lack of activity during round three, and yet this was officially the best fight on the card. Hmm. Personally, I would have given that honor to Kim vs. Silva — who doesn’t love a comeback knockout? — but maybe the UFC wanted to spread the bonus money around a little more.
Jake Shields‘s split-decision win over Demian Maia was impressive in theory, but not particularly fun to watch. We have to give Shields props for going into enemy territory and out-grappling a grappler who was supposed to be better than him. And he absolutely did that, securing more dominant positions against Maia and abusing the Brazilian with punches and elbows from the top whenever the opportunities presented themselves. The question is, will a methodical 25-minute ground battle do anything to raise Jake’s stock in the welterweight division? Short answer: Hell no. There are too many exciting contenders currently clogging up the top of the 170-pound ladder, and once again, Shields proved that his fights are not required viewing. Seven bouts into his UFC career, he’s still looking for his first stoppage victory, and he’s never been worthy of a Fight of the Night bonus. Being a great fighter means nothing if the fans and the promotion don’t care.
As for Fabio Maldonado vs. Joey Beltran…ugh, what can you say, really? Some ugly brawls are fun to watch, some are just ugly. Maldonado proved that even in victory, he can’t avoid getting his face torn to shit, and that he’ll make it a close fight even when he doesn’t have to. Beltran proved that he might not even be a Bellator-caliber fighter, although we’ll leave that to Viacom to decide.
Main Card
Jake Shields def. Demian Maia via split decision (48-47 x 2, 47-48)
Dong Hyun Kim def. Erick Silva via KO, 3:01 of round 2
Thiago Silva def. Mat Hamill via unanimous decision (30-27 x 2, 29-28)
Fabio Maldonado def. Joey Beltran via split decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
Rousimar Palhares def. Mike Pierce via submission (heel hook), 0:31 of round 1
Raphael Assuncao def. T.J. Dillashaw via split decision (29-28 x 2, 28-29)
Preliminary Card
Igor Araujo def. Ildemar Alcantara via unanimous decision (29-28 x 3)
Yan Cabral def. David Mitchell via unanimous decision (30-27 x 3)
Chris Cariaso def. Iliarde Santos via TKO, 4:31 of round 2
Alan Patrick def. Garett Whiteley via TKO, 3:54 of round 1
UFC welterweight Rousimar Palhares earned a convincing win over Mike Pierce at UFC Fight Night 29, and he did so with his signature submission.
An aggressive Pierce charged the Brazilian right out of the gate, forcing a scramble against the cage. Palha…
UFC welterweight RousimarPalhares earned a convincing win over Mike Pierce at UFC Fight Night 29, and he did so with his signature submission.
An aggressive Pierce charged the Brazilian right out of the gate, forcing a scramble against the cage. Palhares attempted one leg lock before standing, only to drop down for another.
Though Pierce had escaped the first submission attempt, Palhares‘ pressure proved too much on the next attempt, forcing a quick tap. Palhares snapped a two-fight losing streak in the process.
Here’s what we learned:
What We’ll Remember About This Fight
Another Palhares leg lock. He’s done it several times before, and opponents ought to know better at this point than to risk their lower limbs against “Toquinho.” But even if he is most famous for his leg locks, Palhares continues to force opponents to submit to them, as if fighters aren’t convinced that the locks are all that good. Again he reminds us that they are.
What We Learned About RousimarPalhares
We already knew that Palhares was a wizard on the ground, and his leg locks have always been the most feared in the sport. So the heel hook submission win over Pierce was not all that surprising. Did we learn anything about the Brazilian then? All we can say at this point is that Palhares is extremely competitive against fighters outside the top 10 or top 15 in the welterweight division, as this win shows. He just can’t seem to break through into contention.
What We Learned About Mike Pierce
Pierce actually had a strong gameplan in this one, rushing forward early in an attempt to get to Palhares. The last three times Palhares was defeated, he was knocked out in the first round. Unfortunately, we learned that Pierce, though somewhat powerful, should never rely on his striking to win a fight. And that submission defense? Yeah, he needs to work on that, too.
What’s Next For Palhares
Palhares won’t get a top-10 guy next time out, but there are plenty of options outside of the ranked welterweights. One possibility is a match-up against Stephen Thompson, who defeated Chris Clements via knockout at UFC 165, which would set up a striker vs. grappler matchup. Another option is for Palhares to meet the winner of Erick Silva vs. Dong Hyun Kim, who fight in the co-main event later tonight.
What’s Next For Pierce
Pierce takes a big step back, but he is still one of the better known unranked fighters (even if he’s spent a good share of time on Facebook prelims). A matchup against the loser of Nate Marquardt vs. Hector Lombard fight seems like a fine idea. Those two meet at UFC 166.
Handling the play-by-play for the FOX Sports 1 main card is Seth Falvo, who will be stacking live results and his own deep thoughts after the jump beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and please toss your own thoughts into the comments section.
(“Alright homey, let’s give these fans what they paid for — 25 minutes of evenly-matched grappling stalemates.” / Photo via Getty)
Handling the play-by-play for the FOX Sports 1 main card is Seth Falvo, who will be stacking live results and his own deep thoughts after the jump beginning at 7 p.m. ET. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest, and please toss your own thoughts into the comments section.
Preliminary card results Igor Araujo def. Ildemar Alcantara by unanimous decision
Yan Cabral def. David Mitchell by unanimous decision
Chris Cariaso def. Iliarde Santos by TKO, 4:31 Round Two
Alan Patrick def. Garett Whiteley by TKO, 3:45 Round One
Please stand by…
Good evening everyone – pleasure for me to be bringing you live results. I hope you didn’t buy into that “deep thoughts” nonsense that Ben tried to sell you on. Honestly, if I make it through this with only one semi-related GIF, only one obscure professional wrestling reference, and only five hundred typos, I’ll consider this liveblog a smashing success.
AND WE ARE LIVE!!!
I happen to be watching the fights this evening from the classiest place imaginable. Well, classiest place that will allow me to furiously tap at a keyboard and swear at a television, that is (I’m at a suburban Buffalo Wild Wings outside of New Orleans. Judge me, bro). KenFlo’s hair looks magnificent, there’s an Ultimate Fighter preview on tv, and all is right in the world. Alright, let’s do this:
Raphael Assuncao vs. T.J. Dillashaw
Round One: Nice leg kick from Raphael to start us of. Dillashaw is swinging for the fences early, but not really connecting. They’re feeling each other out, throwing leg kicks that occasionally land. Dillashaw with a nice takedown, but Assuncao is soon back to his feet. Head kick from Dillashaw gets caught by Assuncao, but Dillashaw escapes. There’s a scramble, and Dillashaw not has Assuncao’s back! He’s working for a standing rear-naked choke, and Assuncao is now on the mat. He’s got room to breathe though. Dillashaw gives up on the choke attempt, and Assuncao manages to escape. They’re back on their feet now. Dillashaw attempts a front kick as the round comes to an end.
Round Two: They touch gloves, and Assuncao immediately throws a leg kick. Another one lands for Assuncao. He now attempts a head kick, but it misses. Dillashaw now does the same thing. Dillashaw throws a body kick, and Assuncao catches it, landing a nice straight. Dillashaw lands another takedown, pinning Assuncao against the cage. They’re back to their feet, and Dillashaw throws another head kick. Assuncao trips, then attempts a takedown that is stuffed by Dillashaw. Once again, Dillashaw has Assuncao’s back, but Assuncao escapes and we’re back to the feet. Lots of blood now, but I can’t tell who is bleeding.
Um, is this a mid-round commercial break? Dafuq?
Round Three: We’re back, and both guys are feeling each other out with the occasional leg kick. So far, I got Dillashaw winning both rounds…you know, in case you care to trust the guy who just got confused by a commercial break. Assuncao catches another kick, and works for another takedown that Dillashaw stuffs immediately. Dillashaw appears to be cut above his right eye. Two minutes left in this one. Assuncao is landing some nice counter strikes, but unless he gets the KO, I think it’ll be too little too late. One minute left now, and Assuncao misses with a kick. Assuncao now has Dillashaw clinched up against the cage, but Dillashaw escapes. This fight comes to an end, and I have Dillashaw taking it, 29-28. Let’s see if the refs agree…
Only one does. Raphael Assuncao def. T.J. Dillashaw by split decision.
Rousimar Palhares vs. Mike Pierce
Round One:Pierce immediately rushes Palhares, and immediately regrets his decision by nearly getting caught in a heel hook. He escapes, and proceeds to get caught in a heel hook that actually ends the fight.
Official Result: Rousimar Palhares def. Mike Pierce via submission (heel hook), 0:31 of Round One. Bold prediction [/sarcasm]: This will be the submission of the night.
We’ve now got Chael Sonnen and Brian Stann doing their best to convince us that Thiago Silva vs. Matt Hamill will be worth watching. That’s neat, I guess…
That segment is wisely followed up by a UFC 166 preview.
Fabio Maldonado vs. Joey Beltran
Round One: They touch gloves, and Beltran is throwing combinations early and often. He now has Fabio clinched against the cage, and…ouch, that’s gotta hurt. Is it me, or is Maldonado like, reaaalllllyyyy prone to nut shots? Okay, we’re back. Beltran is throwing, but Maldonado is doing a good job avoiding his punches. They clinch against the cage again, and Beltran looks for a standing guillotine. Maldonado with a few nice body shots, and Beltran is now incorporating a wall-and-stall heavy offense, with a few knees and elbows sprinkled in . Beltran swings for the fences, but Maldonado avoids his haymakers. He can’t escape from the cage though. Beltran lands a nice straight right, and Fabio seems dazed. The round ends with Maldonado taunting Beltran, who I think was busy enough to take the round.
Round Two: Maldonado begins the round with a double thumbs-up. I approve. Beltran is throwing some heavy strikes, but Maldonado is doing a nice job avoiding and countering. Beltran rushes Maldonado against the cage, and both men are now letting their hands go. Beltran clinches Maldonado against the cage, and lands a really nice knee. Yamasaki separates them, as Maldonado appears to have dropped his mouth guard. Beltran attempts to get Fabio back against the cage, but Maldonado gets away. This fight now has both men clinching in the center of the cage, throwing body shots. They separate, with Beltran blitzing Maldonado in an attempt to get his back against the cage, as this round comes to an end. Good fight.
Round Three: We’ve got more combinations, more Beltran clinching against the cage, a foul (this time Beltran is on the business end), blood, more clinching, some nice knees from Beltran, and these two hug it out at the end of the fight. What can I say, I decided to be efficient this round.
Fabio Maldonado def. Joey Beltran via split decision.
Thiago Silva vs. Matt Hamill
I do not feel good about this…
Round One: Hamill has officially lasted longer than Mike Pierce did…so, you know, there’s that. Leg kick Hamill. And another, that Silva counters with a huge right hand. Leg kick Silva. Hamill with a nice body shot there. Two minutes left in the round, with Silva missing with a vicious haymaker. Hamill is doing a good job avoiding Silva’s heavier shopts, but Silva has had success with leg kicks throughout the round. Much closer first round than I was anticipating.
Round Two: Hamill catches Silva early, but Silva recovers. Hamill is keeping his hands dangerously low, as Silva is still catching Hamill with leg kicks. Some awkward, slow combinations from Hamill…that Silva barely misses. My this fight is sad. Silva now has Hamill’s back and is throwing punches, but Hamill escapes. The fight returns to a slow, sloppy kickboxing match, until Hamill takes Silva’s back against the cage. Hamill now has Silva on the ground, but can’t finish the fight before this round mercifully comes to an end.
Round Three: You know what? Screw liveblogging this fight. Play us off, wrestler GIF.
Thiago Silva def. Matt Hamill via unanimous decision.
Erick Silva vs. Dong-Hyun Kim
Whoa, technical difficulties here! Don’t get too excited though, because I’m back. Anyways, Kim’s grinding style works well in neutralizing Silva for most of the fight, and then Kim connects with a HUGE overhand right left, knocking Silva out cold. Awesome victory for Kim!
Dong-Hyun Kim def. Erick Silva via KO, 3:01 Round Two
Main event time!
Demian Maia vs. Jake Shields
Round One: No glove touch here, as Shields opens up with some leg kicks. Maia shoots for a takedown, and now has Shields against the cage looking for the takedown. He eventually gets it, and is in Shields’ guard. Maia looks to transition, but Shields’ butterfly guard is strong, and is controlling Maia’s hips well. Shields gets to his feet, and works for a takedown of his own now. Maia reverses, and lands another takedown. Shields gets up, but gives Maia his back in the process. Shields escapes, and gets Maia down. Maia has shields in his half guard, and gains full guard as Shields attempts to pass to side control. Shields attempts to pass guard, but Maia isn’t having it. Shields throws a few punches now, as Maia is now throwing punches from the bottom. The round ends with Shields in Maia’s guard.
Round Two: Shields opens the round with a few kicks, and then shoots for a takedown. Maia stuffs it, and looks for a takedown of his own now. Shields counters that takedown, and is in Maia’s half guard against the cage. Maia has full guard now. Shields is working for elbows, as Maia looks for a way back to his feet. Shields is back in Maia’s half guard, as Maia looks for a triangle. Shields avoids it, as Maia uses the butterfly guard to try to get a little space. Shields is content to control space – not exactly a bad strategy when you’re grappling against a guy like Maia. To Maia’s credit, he’s been looking for submissions and passes for the entire round, as this one comes to an end.
Round Three: Shields with another leg kick, and throws a head kick as well. Maia with a straight left, and misses with another one. Body shot Maia. Big left from Maia, as Shields decides he’s done pretending to be a kickboxer and shoots for a takedown. Maia reverses it, and now has Shields against the cage. Shields counters the takedown nicely, and now they’re back on the feet. Maia rocks Shields, and has Shields’ back. He gets the takedown, and has Shields’ back. AWESOME reversal from Shields, and he’s in Maia’s guard. Both guys are punching each other from Maia’s guard, as Shields now passes to Maia’s half-guiard. Maia throwing some ineffective punches from the bottom, as Shields begins to throw a few hammerfists. Shields throws a few elbows, as this round comes to an end.
Round Four: They feel each other out, and Shields rushes in for a double-leg takedown. Shields has Maia against the cage, but Maia reverses, and throws a knee against the cage. Shields reverses position now, and the ref has seen enough. He separates them, and Shields immediately shoots for a single leg. He’s unable to get it, and looks frustrated. He shoots for another, and Maia stuffs it. Maia is in Shields’ guard, with just under two minutes to go. Maia with some body shots, and we’ve got yet another stand-up. Eh, I’ve seen more than enough sloppy kickboxing from Silva/Hamill, but it’s not the worst stand-up I’ve seen. Maia gets the better of the exchanges as this round comes to an end. Both guys look exhausted.
Round Five: It’s been a close fight, as Shields is working his jab early and often to start things off. Maia is throwing some heavy shots, but he’s coming up short with most of them. Shields shoots for a takedown, but Maia stuffs it. Shields with a kick. Shields shoots for another takedown, but Maia stays on his feet. Maia now has Shields against the cage, but Shields escapes, and we’re treated to more grapplers impersonating kickboxers. Delightful. Maia lands a nice left hand, and Shields lands a kick. Shields shoots for another takedown, but Maia sprawls. Shields has Maia against the cage, but Maia works for a standing kimura. The ref separates them with less than thirty seconds to go. Maia is swinging for the fences, but Shields manages to survive until the end of the fight.
Tough call on who won this one…
The official decision is in: Jake Shields def. Demian Maia via split decision.
Eh, my parlay paid off, so I’m pretty excited. Interesting night of fights. We’ll have plenty to discuss tomorrow.
(How could you ever forget the guy who dresses like his opponents during public appearances? Photo via Getty.)
We only briefly touched upon this, but there’s a head-scratcher of a fight going down at this weekend’s Fight Night: Shields vs. Maia event, and we’re not just talking about the main event. In the welterweight division, Rousimar Palhares will undergo a last ditch weight cut to save his career when he takes on Mike Pierce. The former has dropped two consecutive contests by way of (T)KO. The latter is currently riding a four-fight win streak with two of those wins coming by way of (T)KO. It is…an odd matchup.
This fact has not been lost on Pierce, who in a recent interview with ESPN, vented his frustrations in regards to the oft misunderstood Joe Silva and the quality of his recent opponents. He also called Palhares a desperate, cheater asshole, but we’ll get to that later:
ESPN: That kind of matchmaking starting to bother you?
Pierce: Of course, I’m p—ed off. I want to start getting those main card fights against notable guys. Palhares has fought some tough guys. He’s got a little bit of credence to his name but I want to start working my up. This guy is coming off two losses and I’m on a 4-fight win streak. Typically, they don’t match up guys like that.
Maybe I need to get a big pitcher of beer for Joe and sit down and hash this out. No, it’s just one of those things where I have to keep doing what I’m doing until they can’t ignore me anymore.
(How could you ever forget the guy who dresses like his opponents during public appearances? Photo via Getty.)
We only briefly touched upon this, but there’s a head-scratcher of a fight going down at this weekend’s Fight Night: Shields vs. Maia event, and we’re not just talking about the main event. In the welterweight division, Rousimar Palhares will undergo a last ditch weight cut to save his career when he takes on Mike Pierce. The former has dropped two consecutive contests by way of (T)KO. The latter is currently riding a four-fight win streak with two of those wins coming by way of (T)KO. It is…an odd matchup.
This fact has not been lost on Pierce, who in a recent interview with ESPN, vented his frustrations in regards to the oft misunderstood Joe Silva and the quality of his recent opponents. He also called Palhares a desperate, cheater asshole, but we’ll get to that later:
ESPN: That kind of matchmaking starting to bother you?
Pierce: Of course, I’m p—ed off. I want to start getting those main card fights against notable guys. Palhares has fought some tough guys. He’s got a little bit of credence to his name but I want to start working my up. This guy is coming off two losses and I’m on a 4-fight win streak. Typically, they don’t match up guys like that.
Maybe I need to get a big pitcher of beer for Joe and sit down and hash this out. No, it’s just one of those things where I have to keep doing what I’m doing until they can’t ignore me anymore.
Pierce raises an interesting point here — one that was touched upon by Ben Fowlkes in the aftermath of Yushin Okami’s firing. In fact, Pierce and Okami probably have more in common than you would originally expect. Both are upper level guys who were just never able to reach that final level of excellence (Pierce more so than Okami, who did get one title challenge under his belt). Both are grinders, known more for their ability to impose their will on their opponents than to finish them impressively (Okami more so than Pierce, who again, has finished 2 of his last 4 opponents).
Unfortunately, there comes a time in a fighter’s career where those facts begin to work against them. As Silva stated when the UFC decided to release Okami, “Nobody new can come in until somebody old goes. If you’re tired of seeing rematches, then you’ve got to clear space and bring in new people.” Pierce has been slugging his way through the UFC’s welterweight division since 2009, but yet he still carries the same “underrated” and “overlooked” tags with him wherever he goes.
Suffice it to say, the next time opportunity knocks on Pierce’s door, he better kick it off the goddamned hinges because it may never come again.
And as for his next opponent? Pierce has less than positive things to say as well:
ESPN: What are your thoughts on Palhares’ style? He has a history of going real deep on submission attempts in the Octagon.
Pierce: Well yeah, there was that one clear, obvious one where he held it when the referee told him to let go and he got fined by a commission (UFC 111). Then recently, he tested positive for elevated testosterone levels (UFC on FX 6), so this guy is definitely a cheat. There’s no surprise. He’ll do anything to win because he’s either desperate or an (a——). I’m not too concerned about that. I come in expecting he’s going to be mean, try to be a bully, try to cheat — I have to deal with it.
