The second fight at UFC on Versus 3 featured a middleweight match between jiu-jitsu black belts Dave Branch and Rousimar Palhares. After dropping his UFC debut to Gerald Harris, Branch rebounded against Tomasz Drwal and Rich Antonitto. Palhares, by contrast, had done well for himself against top contenders until his controversial first-round TKO loss to Nate Marquardt.
The first round was a close affair, but the superior grappler won out. Just before the bell to signal the end of the first round, Palhares was deep into a knee bar. He wasn't able to finish it, but Branch looked very close to tapping at points. Branch was a gamer, however, and raised his hand to get the crowd to cheer for him as Palhares attempted the submission. The round ended, but a clear 10-9 for Palhares.
The second round was where Palhares merely finished what he started. He was able to finish Branch off in the same way he intended in the first: with a kneebar.
Leg locks are a very different skill set that can very heavily across BJJ players. Although a black belt, it is clear Palhares is the superior leg lock expert of the two.
UFC on Versus 3 results: Rousimar Palhares defeats Dave Branch via submission (kneebar) at 1:44 of round 2.