Muhammad Saidov gave Valter Walker a different kind of shine after both fighters left UFC Abu Dhabi with statement wins.
Saidov, who stopped Dustin Jacoby at 4:49 of Round 2 in his UFC debut, said Walker helped him through rough financial stretches at the gym without trying to get credit for it. The full answer, translated from Russian, went deeper than the short social caption.
“To be honest, I love Valter very much. Even though he is not a person of our mentality, he is very kind-hearted. He has principles like we have in Russia, among Russians, where it is normal to help and support. He is not selfish. He is a kind, straightforward person. As Shara usually says, a kind Russian man, let’s say. I have only positive emotions toward him.”
“I have known him since 2020. He matured as a fighter, probably in front of my eyes. I remember teaching him some things and so on. In general, I like the way he is. He is open, alive, and he is always ready to help.”
“Even when I had some financial difficulties, he would quietly come and put money in my bag. I would come home after training, throw my things in the laundry, and see money lying there. At one point he brought me protein, put it there, hid it. He does it secretly. Our religions say, do good, but do it secretly. He has that thing. So many times I came home, dropped my bag, looked, and there was money lying there. I would think, ‘What? Who?’ Then he would come to the gym and show me like this, like, ‘Don’t tell anyone.’ I only have good feelings toward him, warm feelings toward him.”
The source tweet with Saidov’s answer is embedded below.
https://twitter.com/RedCorner_MMA/status/2081451006181978416
Walker had his own loud night on the same card, submitting Thomas Petersen in 92 seconds and adding another weird leg-lock finish to his UFC run. That result came after his fake-foot fight-week bit already made him one of the more bizarrely watchable heavyweights on the roster.
For Saidov, the important part was not Walker’s antics or the finish. It was the private help behind the scenes, the kind of teammate move that looks a lot different from the usual callouts and results fallout after a busy UFC card.
