Rousimar Palhares will never fight in the UFC again.
This according to UFC president Dana White, who told ESPN’s Jeremy Shaap that the Brazilian submission specialist has been banned from the promotion just one day after a win at UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Shields.
In his welterweight debut, Palhares submitted Mike Pierce in 31 seconds with his patented heel hook. Pierce tapped immediately, but Palhares did not let go of the hold as his opponent screamed in pain.
In 2010, Palhares was suspended for 90 days following a UFC 111 win over Tomasz Drwal when he refused to let go of a heel hook well after his opponent tapped out. Palhares also received a nine-month suspension after testing positive for elevated levels of testosterone following a loss to Hector Lombard in December 2012.
Palhares’ win over Pierce was the only submission at Wednesday’s event, but the UFC did not award him a $50,000 Submission of the Night bonus for what the organization deemed to be “unsportsmanlike conduct.”
The 33-year-old debuted in the UFC in 2008 where he accumulated a record of 8-4. Six of his wins were by submission, five of which came via some form of leg lock.
UPDATE: The UFC released an official statement regarding Palhares’ dismissal. Read it below.
“As announced by UFC president Dana White, the UFC organization has elected to terminate its contract with Rousimar Palhares based on repeated incidents of unsportsmanlike conduct violating the UFC Fighter Code of Conduct and his Promotional Agreement with Zuffa, LLC.”
