Valter
Walker's teammates love him, and for good reason.

Walker (16-1) has a loud personality that would put many extroverts
to shame. However, the boisterous
Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight's teammates, who
aren't men of too many words, absolutely adore him. Walker's
teammate Muhammad
Saidov (10-0) recently revealed a heartwarming story about “The
Foot Hunter.â€

Valter Walker's Gor MMA teammate Muhammad Saidov shares story
of fighter's generosity

Saidov claims Walker snuck money into his kit bag multiple times
when he was going through financial hardship. Walker also bought
protein for Saidov, never letting anyone know about his small acts
of kindness. The unbeaten Russian wholeheartedly loves his
teammate, regardless of his antics.

“I love Valter very much,†Saidov told Red Corner MMA. “Although
his mentality differs from us; he's a very good-natured guy… He is
not selfish at all. He is a very kind and straightforward person… A
friendly and vibrant person, he is always there to help. Even when
I have some financial troubles, he secretly puts cash in my bag. I
would come home from training, take my stuff out to do the laundry,
and find some money in there. Once he bought some protein for me.
And he does those things quietly… I have only got very warm
feelings towards him.â€

Walker's team, Gor
MMA, had a lot of representation at
UFC Abu Dhabi. Saidov started the night well for the team with
a second-round stoppage win over Dustin
Jacoby. Walker followed immediately after, making Thomas
Petersen tap to a calf-slicer in hardly over 90 seconds.

This was Walker’s fifth consecutive submission win. Meanwhile,
Bodgan Guskov led the charge for their gym in a main event clash
against Magomed
Ankalaev. Guskov had stepped up to fight on 14 days' notice but
fell short in a last-round stoppage loss.

“Valter
Walker used to secretly put cash in my gym bag when I needed
money.”

UFC newcomer Magomed
Saidov, who scored a TKO over Dustin
Jacoby in his debut, shares how Valter
Walker quietly helped him during difficult times, revealing the
UFC heavyweight would secretly put money… pic.twitter.com/2rmXtzLBOO

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA)
July 26, 2026

Magomed
Zaynukov received some criticism from Khabib
Nurmagomedov despite a successful
Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.

Zaynukov took on fellow debutant Damian
Rzepecki (10-1) in a lightweight matchup at
UFC Abu Dhabi. The Russian unleashed vicious elbows to batter
Rzepecki, who showed immense heart in going the distance. “Wild
Chanco†eventually earned a unanimous decision win, handing
Rzepecki his first professional loss.

What Khabib Told Magomed Zaynukov after his UFC Abu Dhabi
victory

However, Zaynukov's teammate and mentor Nurmagomedov still found a
flaw in his performance. While the UFC Hall of Famer lauded
Zaynukov on his win, he didn't like the young prospect from his
team missing a takedown. Meanwhile, fellow teammate Islam
Makhachev congratulated Zaynukov on the exciting victory.

“Yeah, we spoke immediately after I got out of the cage,†Zaynukov
said at the post-fight press conference. “Khabib said that it was a
great fight, it was an exciting fight, fun fight. ‘But you missed a
takedown,' he said, ‘And that's not OK.' Islam just said,
‘Congratulations, that was a fun, exciting fight.' But they kind of
expected that this was going to be that type of fight.â€

Zaynukov (9-0) was already quite popular on social media even
before earning his UFC contract on
Dana White's Contender Series last year. The 31-year-old had
significant hype behind him going into his Octagon debut in Abu
Dhabi, further boosted by the viral “John Pork†meme.

Magomed “Chanko†Zaynukov says Khabib
Nurmagomedov spoke to him immediately after his dominant UFC
debut, with his first reaction being to point out the one mistake
he made, saying he shouldn't have missed a takedown. 😅

“Khabib told me it was a great, exciting fight, but said,… pic.twitter.com/lYbYqKCCSN

— Red Corner MMA (@RedCorner_MMA)
July 26, 2026

Steve
Erceg has addressed his brutal loss to Ramazonbek
Temirov, marking the former title challenger's fourth defeat in
the
Ultimate Fighting Championship.

Erceg (14-5) took on Temirov (20-3) in a flyweight matchup in the
co-main event of
UFC Abu Dhabi. Temirov had an evident power advantage over
Erceg, who had planned to take his opponent into deep waters.
However, the Australian didn't have a chance to get going as his
Uzbek counterpart put him to sleep with a pair of perfectly timed
right hands following a barrage of strikes in the opening
round.

Steve Erceg says he’s OK after Ramazonbek Temirov knockout at
UFC Abu Dhabi

Erceg now claims he had a great camp and felt in good shape ahead
of the fight, although it didn't go his way. He thanked the UFC and
Abu Dhabi before congratulating Temirov on his victory. Erceg is
grateful to his family and friends, and promises to bounce back
stronger.

“Just wanted to let you know that I'm OK,†Erceg said in an
Instagram video. “I had a great camp. I felt fantastic. But
unfortunately, things don't always go your way. First of all, thank
you to the UFC for the opportunity that you offered me. Thank you
to Abu Dhabi for the hospitality. And congratulations to Ramazon on
a great fight. Lastly, I would like to say to all my family and
friends that your continued support means the world. I'll be
back.â€

Erceg was fast-tracked to a title shot against Alexandre
Pantoja in just his fourth UFC outing in 2024. He came up short
against Pantoja in a valiant effort, which kicked off a three-fight
skid for the Aussie 125-pounder. Erceg had bounced back with wins
over Ode
Osbourne and Tim Elliott
before the latest loss against Temirov, who has finished two of his
three UFC wins in the first round so far, establishing himself as
one of the most promising up-and-comers in the division.