After being fired from the UFC , with Bellator or World series of fighting showing no interest in signing him and ADCC undoing the invitation for his participation, Rousimar Palhares has found a home in the form of the World Jiu-Jitsu expo. He will fight a dream superfight vs fellow leg locker Dean Lister in November, in the event organized by Renzo Gracie. This is what Renzo told Sports Illustrated about ‘Toquinho’:

“I love the guy. You can’t find a nicer person. People say I’m a nice guy, but ‘Toquinho’ is 10 times nicer than me. I don’t see him having the intention to hurt people.

Gracie chalks up this injurious tendency to the naïvete of the 31-year-old, who was brought up poor and uneducated on a farm in rural Brazil:

“He doesn’t know how things work in the real world. He has the mentality of a 12-year-old. You can’t treat him like he’s a grownup. I know everybody’s going to say, ‘Oh, he has to be a professional.’ But he needs guidance. I will sit down with him and have a chat, five minutes. I will explain to him that to be great, you don’t need to hurt people. We learn to grapple in order to dominate our opponent, but if we’re superior, we’re kind. That shows real greatness, you know? Not to hurt or humiliate your opponent. ‘Toquinho’ doesn’t know the difference yet. I will help him understand. Either you learn from your elders, or you’re going to learn by life whipping you. The media goes off on you, the fans go off, Dana White bashes you, and that’s it: You become the witch. You end up on a stake in the fire.”