Valter
Walker believes his compromised feet might be a hurdle on his
way to an
Ultimate Fighting Championship title.

While Walker is a feared leg lock submission artist, he isn't an
elite striker. “The Foot Hunter†recently admitted that his
striking isn't up to the mark due to bad footwork caused by his
compromised feet. Walker revealed that his footwork is poor as his
toes are curled, limiting his ability to be light on his feet.

Valter Walker says childhood shoe problems left him with curled
toes and poor footwork

Coming from a poor background, Walker didn't have money to buy new
shoes as his feet grew. Wearing undersized shoes did long-term
damage to his toes, which is now showing its effects. He claims
that this issue is the biggest stumbling block towards him becoming
a champion.

“I really have a big problem with my footwork,†Walker told Full
Mount MMA. “My foot is not really good because when I was young, I
didn't have money to buy new shoes. All the time my foot grew and
the shoes were smaller than my feet. My toes are a little bit
[curled]. And because of this, I have a little bit of a footwork
problem. And I don't really know how I can be a champion.â€

While Walker (16-1) isn't in the UFC heavyweight title picture yet,
he has quickly ascended the ranks. The 28-year-old has scored five
consecutive submission wins since suffering his lone professional
loss in his UFC debut in 2024.

😬 Valter
Walker says he didn't have money to buy new shoes, which is why
he has bad footwork and striking:

“My toes are curled. I have really bad footwork.â€

🎥 @MMAFullMount
pic.twitter.com/lTyyaIf0Jt

— Full Mount MMA (@MMAFullMount)
September 21, 2026

Patricio
“Pitbull” Freire believes reconnecting with a longtime boxing
coach, Edelson Silva, played a major role in getting his career
back on track.

Freire recently returned to winning ways in the final bout of his

Ultimate Fighting Championship contract, finishing Doo Ho Choi
by first-round technical knockout at UFC
331.

Patricio Freire credits reunion with Edelson Silva for Doo Ho
Choi finish

After his victory over Choi, Freire spoke about his reunion with
Silva, which he credited as the primary factor in reviving his
career. Talking to UFC Brazil's Evelyn Rodrigues as he left the
Octagon, the former Bellator
champ said the reunion allowed him to fight more freely.

“I wasn't letting myself go in the previous fights, but thank God I
was able to find myself again in this one,†Freire said after the
victory. “Edelson worked with me from 2000 to 2015. Unfortunately,
we drifted apart for 11 years, when he worked on 10 of Anderson
Silva's camps. But we were able to work things out and make
peace.â€

UFC CEO Dana
White remained coy about Freire's future in the promotion at
the post-fight presser, but commended the Brazilian's victory.
Neither party has indicated whether he'll be offered a contract
renewal.

Manel
Kape is making his case for the next
Ultimate Fighting Championship flyweight title shot.

Joshua
Van (18-2) successfully defended the 125-pound championship in
a rematch against Alexandre
Pantoja at UFC
331 on Sept. 19. Top-ranked flyweight Manel Kape,
seemingly the frontrunner for a shot at UFC gold, can't wait to
fight Van as he favors the matchup stylistically.

Manel Kape sees UFC champion Joshua Van's striking style as an
ideal matchup

Van has faced wrestling-heavy fighters in his two title defenses so
far, finishing Tatsuro
Taira and going the distance with Alexandre
Pantoja in a five-round war. Kape, one of the best strikers in
the division, can't wait to dissect Van's boxing-centric fighting
style and he claims he'll make it look effortless.

“The perfect style for me to paint a masterpiece,†Kape posted on
X. “You're all going to be surprised by how easy I make this fight
look.â€

The California State Athletic Commission released the fight night
weights for all UFC 331 fighters. Van weighed 145.8 pounds on fight
night, gaining 20.8 pounds after weighing in at 125 pounds. Kape
claims he'll be as heavy as 160 pounds on fight night.

“Manel Kape; event weight 160 lb,†he wrote in another post.

Kape (23-7) is currently on a four-fight knockout streak and fresh
off a come-from-behind finish over top contender Kyoji
Horiguchi.

The perfect style for me to paint a
masterpiece. https://t.co/4jtWsnH8nw

— Manel
Kape (@ManelKape)
September 20, 2026

You're all going to be surprised by how easy
I make this fight look. https://t.co/4jtWsnH8nw

— Manel
Kape (@ManelKape)
September 21, 2026

Manel Kape ;
event weight 160 lb https://t.co/tSWnc22aQH

— Manel
Kape (@ManelKape)
September 21, 2026