Rousimar Christian Palhares (Portuguese pronunciation: [ʁowziˈmaʁ paˈʎaɾiʃ];, born February 20, 1980) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 2006, he has competed for the UFC, World Series of Fighting, and KSW. His nickname Toquinho (Portuguese pronunciation: [toˈkĩɲu]), Portuguese for "little tree stump", comes from his short, stocky, heavily muscled build and the low success rate his opponents have had in grappling him down to the canvas. Palhares is primarily known for his powerful ground game. Of his 15 submission victories 11 have come from leg locks. He is also known for his refusal to release submission holds when either the opposing fighter has signaled submission or the referee has called a stop to the bout, causing him to be fired by the UFC, and WSO