UFC

White revealed the match-up Monday morning via Twitter.

Belcher made his triumphant return to the Octagon at UFN 25 after more than a year on the sidelines with an eye injury that nearly ended his career. The 17-6 middleweight has won his last three fights including his opening round beatdown of Jason MacDonald last September.

Palhares (14-3) has also come out with his hand raised the last three times he’s set foot in the Octagon, picking up a pair of his trademark Heel Hook victories and a decision over Dan Miller over the span. Ten of his total wins have been the result of a submission stoppage including five in the UFC.

The main card of UFC on FOX 3 was completed with the clash, now featuring Palhares-Belcher, Pat Barry vs. Lavar Johnson, Josh Koscheck vs. Johny Hendricks, and headliner Jim Miller vs. Nate Diaz. Preliminary pairings include Dennis Hallman-Tony Ferguson, Pascal Krauss-John Hathaway, and John Dodson-Darren Uyenoyama.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The 13-3 Palhares will have a chance to exhibit the lessons he’s learned in a little over a week when he faces Mike Massenzio at UFC 142: Aldo vs. Mendes, and, as revealed in a video from the UFC documenting his preparation, it’s an opportunity the 31-year old is extremely appreciative of.

“I can’t tell you how great it is and how grateful I am to be fighting here in Brazil,” Palhares began on the upcoming bout. “I’m to present the best show I can present. Do you know why? Because I want people to believe what I believe. If I have made it, and few have, it takes a lot of character. Everyone can change for the better. That’s what you’ll see on the 14th.”

Palhares also had another message for fans, letting them know that they should never give up in life because he’s an example of what hard work and self-belief can do.

“Go after your dreams, don’t let them die. Nobody has the right to take a dream anyone from anybody. Everyone has the right to dream. And to go after the dream, to fight for it. What comes after that is only happiness.”

Palhares-Massenzio will be part of the UFC 142 main card, an event headlined by 145-pound champion Jose Aldo putting his belt on the line against undefeated grappler Chad Mendes as well as Vitor Belfort vs. Anthony Johnson.

Check out the entire Palhares video below:

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

The bout has been confirmed by UFC officials.

Palhares is no stranger to fighting New Jersey native in Brazil, having dispatched of Dan Miller earlier this year at UFC 134. Known for his deadly leg locks, “Toquinho” has compiled a 6-2 UFC record with his only two losses coming against Dan Henderson and Nate Marquardt. In his 13 career victories, nine of them have come by way of submission. He holds a black belt in jiu-jitsu and took second in the 2011 ADCC Submission Wrestling World Champions under 88kg division.

With his back against the wall at UFC 136, Massenzio turned in his best UFC performance to date, picking up a unanimous decision victory over former WEC champion Steve Cantwell. Prior to that bout, Massenzio was 1-3 in the UFC with his only victory coming in his 2008 debut against Drew McFedries.

UFC 142 is scheduled for January 14 at the HSBC Arena in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. The night will be headlined by a featherweight title fight between champion Jose Aldo and top contender Chad Mendes.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

A report on Sherdog confirmed Thiago’s participation and expected opponent in the form 11-1 David Mitchell based on a conversation with the Brazilian law officer.

Thiago hasn’t fought since October with back-to-back decision losses in his previous pair of outings. He is 13-3 with eight submission wins while Mitchell boasts a similar feat with nine subs in his eleven total victories.

Meanwhile, Tatame relayed word of Palhares’ presence after the submission savvy powerhouse’s coach, former UFC middleweight champ Murilo Bustamante, alluded to the possibility on Twitter.

If the 12-3 “Toquinho” does indeed receive the opportunity to compete in front of his countrymen at UFC Rio he will look to build on a second round Heel Hook win over Dave Branch at UFC Live 3 in March. The submission marked his fifth by way of the technique in nine total tap-outs.

UFC Rio is set to feature what should be a number of exciting affairs including co-headlining tilts between 185-pound king Anderson Silva and Yushin Okami, as well as former light heavyweight champions Mauricio “Shogun” Rua and Forrest Griffin battling it out in front of the Brazilian crowd.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

News of the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu showdown was reported over the weekend by Tatame.

Palhares has won three of his last four bouts but was beaten by way of TKO in his last Octagon appearance against Nate Marquardt. However, the defeat marked the first time “Toquinho” had been finished in his career, and the actual fight-ending blow came after he mistakenly took his attention off the unfolding action while complaining to the referee. He is 11-3 overall and has remarkably submitted five of his past opponents by using a foot-based technique.

Equally skilled in BJJ, Ferreira is also coming off a loss, as he was soundly beaten by well-rounded veteran Vlad Matyushenko in his promotional debut at UFC 122 in November and has since dropped to 185-pounds. Prior to the loss the 18-6 31-year old had emerged successful ten of the last eleven times he’d fought including a recent run of seven straight first-round submissions.

Though not officially announced, “UFC on Versus 3” is expected to be headlined by a bout between Diego Sanchez and Martin Kampmann in addition to featuring Palhares vs. Ferreira and other match-ups such as C.B. Dollaway vs. Mark Munoz and Alessio Sakara vs. Maiquel Falcao.

PHOTO CREDIT – UFC

News of the powerful submission-specialist’s extension, as well as his desire to fight Marquardt, came by way of his trainer at Brazilian Top Team, Murilo Bustamante, in a conversation with Tatame.

“He’s very motivated, he knows that he let the victory escape – he made a mistake – but these things happen in life…but he’s crazy to fight Nate again. He wants this fight pretty bad and he’s training for it. Rousimar is conditioned and training every day as if he had a fight scheduled,” said the old school UFC middleweight champ.

Palhares was knocked unconscious by “Nate the Great” in September after failing on one of his go-to submissions, then letting his defenses down to question the referee about the slipperiness of Marquardt’s legs. The Fight Night 22 defeat was the first time Palhares had been finished in his career and earned Marquardt an opportunity to face Yushin Okami for a title-shot, a bout he ultimately lost by way of the judges’ scorecards.

“Toquinho” is 13-3 overall and is known for his leg/ankle locks. He is 4-2 in the UFC with wins over Tomasz Drwal, Lucio Linhares, Ivan Salaverry, and Jeremy Horn, as well as the recent loss to Marquardt and a decision-based defeat in September 2008 to Dan Henderson.

The Ultimate Fighter Season 8 champion, who will be fighting Charles Oliveira in the event’s co-headlining bout, not only came in heavy for the bout but significantly so. Escudero clocked in at 159 pounds and was penalized 20% of his salary as a result. Comparably, Oliveira registered in at 154 pounds, so the fight will also be contested as a “catch-weight” affair based on Escudero’s flub.

Meanwhile, middleweights Nate Marquardt and Rousimar Palhares both measured in at 186 pounds for their main-event match-up. The 29-9-2 Marquardt will be looking to bounce back from a decision loss to top 185-pound contender Chael Sonnen at UFC 109 last February when he squares off against his submission-savvy adversary at the show. Palhares is currently on a three-fight win streak and won his last pair of Octagon appearances by way of heel-hook. He has submitted eight of the thirteen opponents he’s faced and is 11-2 overall in his career.

Here is a complete rundown of “Fight Night 22” results:

Tomasz Drwal (185.5 lbs) vs. Dave Branch (186 lbs)
Brian Foster (170.5 lbs) vs. Forrest Petz (170 lbs)
David Mitchell (170.5 lbs) vs. Anthony Waldburger (171 lbs)
Rich Attonito (185 lbs) vs. Rafael Natal (186 lbs)
Jared Hamman (205 lbs) vs. Kyle Kingsbury (206 lbs)
Yves Edwards (155 lbs) vs. John Gunderson (156 lbs)
Cole Miller (156 lbs) vs. Ross Pearson (156 lbs)
Jim Miller (155.5 lbs) vs. Gleison Tibau (154 lbs)
Efrain Escudero (159 lbs) vs. Charles Oliveira (154 lbs)*
Nate Marquardt (186 lbs) vs. Rousimar Palhares (186 lbs)

* – Escudero will give 20% of his purse to Oliveira for coming in heavy

The report of the injury came courtesy of intheguard.tv and went on to say that Palhares underwent successful surgery in Rio de Janeiro.

Palhares broke into the UFC in May of 2008 at UFC 84 against Ivan Salaverry and submitted the veteran with an armbar in the first round. Palhares then faced Dan Henderson at UFC 88 and while he lost a unanimous decision, the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt did not make it easy for Henderson as he was constantly looking for submissions and kept the PRIDE veteran off guard the entire 15 minutes.

Palhares rebounded nicely at UFC 93 when he defeated Jeremy Horn via unanimous decision. He was the favorite going into the fight with Sakara due to his dominant submissions. Now he will have to wait until at least July to begin training again. Palhares is currently under the tutelage of former UFC middleweight champion Murilo Bustamante at Brazilian Top Team. He is 9-2 with six of those victories coming via submission.

MMAWeekly has been able to confirm the match-up today from sources close to both fighters.

Palhares, who trains with the the Brazilian Top Team, is coming off a resounding victory over Jeremy Horn at UFC 93 in January. Although he was unable to finish the famed Miletich fighter he controlled the pace of the fight and the outcome was never in doubt. Palhares made quite a splash in the UFC when he submitted and retired Ivan Salaverry at UFC 84. He then went on to face Dan Henderson at UFC 88 and lost a unanimous decision but he certainly had nothing to be ashamed of as he was very competitive against the former two division champion.

Sakara who began his career as a boxer in Italy and trains with American Top Team has been somewhat of an enigma throughout his time in the UFC. While he is 4-4-1 during his time in the octagon he has shown flashes of becoming a complete fighter only to take two steps backwards and lose fights in convincing fashion. He recently dropped down to middleweight and in his first fight at 185, he lost by first round TKO to Chris Leben. He then came back and won his next fight via head kick at UFC Fight Night 15 in September of 2008. It is that on again, off again mentality that has hindered him during his time in the UFC.

UFC 99 will feature a catchweight bout at 195 lbs between former Pride FC 205 lb champion Wanderlei Silva and former UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin. While Franklin has decided to fight at a more natural 205 lbs, Silva has decided to try his hand at 185 but will first give 195 a try to see how his body reacts to the weight cut.

UFC 99 will also mark the return of former lightweight title challenger Caol Uno as he faces Spencer Fisher. Also featured on the card will be a welterweight tilt between Mike Swick and up and coming Ben Saunders. In a bout where fireworks are sure to be expected “The Irish Hand Grenade” Marcus Davis will battle Britian’s own Dan Hardy.

The news is courtesy of a report by our friends at MMAjunkie.com.

Palhares, 8-2, last competed at UFC 88 this past September, where he suffered a unanimous decision defeat to former PRIDE welterweight and middleweight champion Dan Henderson. Prior to the fight vs. Henderson, Palhares had one other bout in the UFC, making his debut at UFC 84 in May where he submitted Ivan Salaverry with an armbar at 2:36 of round 1.

Horn is 80-18-5 in documented MMA fights and has performed in the UFC during the course of several tours of duties. The 33-year old made his UFC debut in May of 1998 at UFC 17, where he lost to Frank Shamrock after submitting to a kneebar at 16:28 of round 1.

Horn’s most recent fight in the UFC took place at the live season finale for the seventh season of “The Ultimate Fighter,” where he was submitted by Dean Lister at 3:52 of round 1. The loss dropped Horn to 1-3 in his last four bouts with all losses coming via submission. Prior to submitting to a triangle choke against Jorge Santiago during a 2007 Art of War event, Horn had not tapped in a fight since UFC 30 in 2001.

UFC 93 is scheduled to be headlined by a light heavyweight matchup featuring Rich Franklin and Dan Henderson. Additional matchups includes Mauricio “Shogun” Rua vs. Mark Coleman, Denis Kang vs. Alan Belcher, Andre Gusmao vs. Antonio Mendes, and Marcus Davis vs. Chris Lytle.

Palhares made his UFC debut at UFC 84 this past May thanks in large part to his impressive 3-0 record while competing for Brazil’s Fury Fighting Championships. Facing veteran Ivan Salaverry in his Octagon debut, Palhares did not disappoint after he notched a first round armbar submission.

While the fight with Salaverry was not featured during the live portion of the PPV broadcast, the performance was still strong enough to spark some fans to suggest that Palhares could be an eventual challenger for current UFC middleweight champion Anderson Silva. Based on the UFC’s decision to match Palhares against former PRIDE middleweight and welterweight champion Dan Henderson in just his second UFC match during tonight’s UFC 88 event, it’s safe to say that the promotion things highly of him as well.

In spite of Palhares’ upside potential, there is relatively little know about him. We decided to touch base with him for an exclusive e-mail interivew that was translated by former UFC middleweight champion Murilo Bustamante.

Gary Ibarra: How old were you when you began training?

Rousimar Palhares: I started when I was 15 in Karate and then later started jiu-jitsu when I was 18.

Gary Ibarra: When did you know that this was something you wanted to pursue as a career?

Rousimar Palhares: When I watched UFC 3, I got crazy with that. It was at that moment that I realized what I wanted to do: to be an MMA fighter. I was 17 or 18 at the time.

Gary Ibarra: Was there a moment when you knew you were able to compete on a professional level?

Rousimar Palhares: When I started I could see I could be a professional. It became my dream after watching the UFC on video.

Gary Ibarra: According to your bio on the UFC’s website you used to work on a farm? How did you end up training Jiu Jitsu?

Rousimar Palhares: Yes, I worked all day on a farm. My family is really poor. Now we are doing a little better but every keeps working really hard there. When I trained in Karate, I arrived at an academy to train but the class was empty. Nobody showed up. Then I jumped inside the jiu-jitsu class, which was inside of the same academy.

Gary Ibarra: The bio on the UFC’s website is really short and it doesn’t shed much light on you as a fighter or how you came to where you are in your career now, was that intentional?

Rousimar Palhares: No, I just answer the question in my own way.

Gary Ibarra: Can you take me through a typical day of training for you before a fight?

Rousimar Palhares: I wake up every day at 7 a.m. At that time I study or I run. After that I have breakfast, then go to the Brazilian Top Team Academy to train at around 10 a.m. By 1 or 2 p.m. I am finished and then go have lunch. I start my second training session of the day around 6 p.m. and I train until 8 p.m. There are times where I train three times a day, but not often. I train jiu-jitsu, wrestling, boxing, and a little bit of Muay Thai. I end up going to bed around 10 p.m. every night. I do this routine Monday through Saturday and on Sunday, I rest.

Gary Ibarra: Are you doing anything different in your training for this fight since Dan Henderson has said he intends to try and keep the fight standing up?

Rousimar Palhares: No, everything is the same (for this fight).

Gary Ibarra: Henderson seems to think that all you have is submissions, he also said “I see myself knocking him out, I am not going to lose” A lot of statements like these can been disregarded as an attempt to hype an upcoming fight but how do you feel when you hear a statement like that from an opponent?

Rousimar Palhares: I think he can say whatever he wants. The fight will be decided inside of the Octagon.

Gary Ibarra: Dan Henderson has beat fellow Brazilian fighters such as Wanderlei Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Renzo Gracie, as well as the man who’s translating this to you, Murilo Bustamante, is there any measure of revenge your looking to exact?

Rousimar Palhares: No, I am just doing my job. Of course he is between me and my dream; which is a title shot.

Gary Ibarra: Dan Henderson is 37 years old, almost 38, he’s coming off a loss to Anderson Silva that was preceded by a loss to Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, some people would see all these things as the signs of a fighter who’s prime of their career is ending, does that have any effect on your confidence coming into this fight? and do you think he’ll be coming out in this fight trying to prove he’s still a capable fighter?

Rousimar Palhares: No, the fact that he’s coming off losses doesn’t change anything for me. My confidence is the same, which is really good. I think he knows his situation right now and maybe it will make him want to prove that he is the same fighter as he was before.

Gary Ibarra: The UFC recently announced its going to be adding the fighters in the light heavyweight and middleweight divisions of the WEC to their stable of available fighters, there Is there anyone in the UFC or WEC that you would want to fight especially?

Rousimar Palhares: No, I just want to fight whoever is between me and the belt.

Gary Ibarra: What would a win against one of the best, most well known fighters in the UFC’s history do for you and your career?

Rousimar Palhares: It would be a very important step in my career because it takes me closer to a title shot.

Editor’s Note: In addition to being a contributor for FiveOuncesOfPain.com, Garry Ibarra is also the owner of his own MMA clothing line, Graffight Apparel. Graffight has established sponsor-based relationships with several fighters. You can click here to access the list.

Dan Henderson, coming off a loss to Anderson Silva in March, will be stepping back into the cage against one of the UFC’s most highly touted international talents, Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares. Henderson will be looking for his first victory inside the UFC since coming over after the collapse PRIDE. Toquinho recently steamrolled Ivan Salaverry in his UFC debut with a very slick armbar.

Rich Franklin, the former UFC middleweight champion, will be facing off against fellow Cincinnati fighter Matt Hamill in a battle at light heavyweight. Franklin is coming off a victory over Travis Lutter at UFC 83 and will be fighting at light heavyweight for the first time since he fought Ken Shamrock at the first ever Ultimate Fighter Finale. Matt Hamill recently beat Tim Boetsch at UFC Fight Night 13 in April and will be looking to make it two in a row since his loss to Michael Bisping last year.

Karo Parisyan will be looking to prove to the world that he’s still top shelf in the UFC’s most talented division when he takes on one of the best Japanese stars that the UFC has signed in recent months, Yoshiyuki Yoshida. Parisyan is coming off a knockout loss to Thiago Alves at UFC Fight Night 13, a fight that would have catapulted him into title contention should he have won. Yoshida recently made his UFC debut, throttling Jon Koppenhaver at UFC 84 in the opening moments of round one.

These three fights are an excellent addition to the card and it looks like UFC 88, even without a title fight, is shaping up to be one of the better events all year.

Neer recently recorded a unanimous decision victory over Din Thomas at UFC Fight Night 13 in what many considered to be the best fight of the evening. No opponent for Neer has yet been finalized.

Thomas last competed at UFC Fight Night 11 where he took on Kenny Florian in the main event. He suffered a submission loss after injuring his knee during the fight. Doctors determined he had a torn meniscus, stretched ACL, and a bruised femur and tibia.

Fellow lightweight, Neer hasn’t competed in the UFC since an August 2006 loss to Nick Diaz. Since that fight, he has gone 6-1 fighting for a variety of organizations, including the International Fight League.

Neer owns some significant victories in the UFC, including a unanimous decision over Joe Stevenson and a first-round submission of Melvin Guillard.

Read additional Din Thomas and Josh Neer content at FiveOuncesOfPain.com.

Stephens, fighting outside of his UFC contract, defeated Nick Walker on Saturday night at Midwest Cage Championships 9 in Urbandale, Iowa.

A day earlier in Iowa, former UFC fighter Josh Neer made his debut at 155 lbs. and was victorious against former UFC and Pride fighter Paul Rodriguez in Des Moines at GreenSparks Fighting Championship 5.

Neer won via TKO at 1:38 in the first round while Stephens also recorded a TKO at 4:45 of round one.