PHOENIX – Jon Fitch said he’ll likely always have a limp because of Rousimar Palhares. But he said the Nevada State Athletic Commission is more to blame than Palhares himself.

Fitch (26-7-1), a former UFC fighter who signed with WSOF in 2013, suffered a title loss to then-welterweight champ Palhares (18-6) at WSOF 16 back in December, though as in past fights, the Brazilian was criticized for holding the kneebar too long.

With a history of past issues, Palhares really didn’t get the benefit of the doubt in that situation. And eight months later, at WSOF 22 in August, he certainly didn’t get any support when he defeated Jake Shields with a kimura that was held even as the ref tried to pry him free.

The latest indiscretion, which came in Las Vegas, cost Palhares his belt, but Fitch said it never should have got to that point. He said the Nevada State Athletic Commission, which is expected to determine Palhares’ fate at a commission hearing next month, should have stepped in before the event.

“He’s taken a lot of dirty shots at people (by) holding on to submissions – he held on to mine, I think, a little bit too long – but I think the blame falls on the commission,” Fitch told MMAjunkie while in Phoenix for tonight’s WSOF 23 event. “I’m going to blame the commission first. This is the commission’s fault.

“It never should gotten to the sixth time. How does it ever get to the sixth time? If this was the sixth marijuana offense, where would his suspension be? Right? So how did it get to six times?”

Fitch, who next meets Yushin Okami at WSOF 24 on Oct. 17, pointed to the case of American Kickboxing Academy teammate Mike Kyle, who continued pummeling on WEC 20 opponent Brian Olsen well after the 2006 fight ended. Kyle sat out two years due to a suspension, and according to Fitch, he had to jump through multiple hurdles to get reinstated after his career initially looked like it might be over.

“That never happened with Palhares,” Fitch said. “He never learned his lesson. He was never taught a lesson. If you’re not going to punish a guy for his actions, he’s just going to keep doing it. … This falls squarely on the shoulders of the commission. It’s the commission’s fault.

“There are a lot of fighters who are injured. They could be fighters who had time taken off their career because of those injuries they received from submissions being held too long. I still have a bit of a limp in my leg that will probably be there forever. … But again, I don’t blame Palhares. I blame the commission.”

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