Rousimar Palhares injured, out of World Jiu-Jitsu Expo match against Dean Lister

An injury has forced Rousimar Palhares out of his jiu-jitsu only showdown against fellow grappling wizard Dean Lister, which was set to go down this weekend (Nov. 10, 2013) at the World Jiu-Jitsu Expo in Long Beach, California.

According to his manager Alexis Davis, a bum shoulder is the reason for "Toquinho's" withdrawal from the much-anticipated grappling match. That, and the fact that the stocky Brazilian has added a few extra pounds, as he recently told MMA Fighting:

"He has a shoulder injury and is a little overweight, but the main reason why he decided to pull out of the fight is because of the injury."

The news comes a few weeks after Rousimar was released from Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ranks for holding onto a heel hook a tad too long in his first-round submission victory over Mike Pierce at UFC Fight Night 29 during their welterweight scrap in Brazil.

Palhares initially denied any wrongdoing, but later admitted that he may have held on to the ligament-straining hold longer than he should have after re-watching the fight on tape.

According to World Jiu-Jitsu Expo president Renzo Gracie -- who confirmed Rousimar's absence from next weekend's event -- Palhares has been getting an unfair shake throughout the whole ordeal.

His words on "The MMA Hour:"

"Palhares is like a 12 years old kid. He was raised in a farm in Brazil, and you can't picture a farm in Iowa. He's so naive. The reality is, he has a completely different mindset. They're born like Indians, and it's like getting an Indian from the jungle and expect them to live here."

Furthermore, Gracie revealed that the search is on to find a late replacement to take on Lister, the two-time Abu Dhabi Combat Club (ADCC) gold medalist.

Any suggestions?