Junior Tafa slapped Valter Walker’s face after a verbal submission loss again in August 2024, and the Brazilian mentioned he needed to flee the nation for being liable to being mobbed exterior the host resort in Perth, Australia.
Walker, who returns to motion in opposition to Don’Tale Mayes this Saturday at UFC Vegas 102, informed MMA Preventing the promotion modified his resort and flight tickets earlier than he even left the sector after being knowledgeable that allegedly dozens of individuals had been ready for him again on the UFC host resort.
Referee Steve Perceval awarded the Brazilian heavyweight a verbal submission victory when Tafa screamed out in ache as Walker attacked with a heel hook within the ultimate seconds of the opening spherical. Tafa felt wronged, and slapped the Brazilian earlier than safety intervened.
“Individuals requested me why I didn’t react,” Walker informed MMA Preventing. “In my thoughts I used to be like, f*ck, I already received. If I react right here, in his residence nation, and there’s a brawl right here… He has greater than 40 individuals with him. They’ll leap in and I’ll need to struggle all of them. [The commission] may overturn this to a no-contest and even fantastic me. I’ll keep cool. He already slapped me, cool. Simply give me the win and let me go.”
Watch the scene beneath.
Walker deliberate on staying in Australia for one more day to “purchase garments in Australia as a result of we don’t have Adidas and stuff like that right here in Russia,” however mentioned the UFC modified his plans.
“After I was about to go away the sector, the UFC stopped me and mentioned there have been like 40 individuals ready for me exterior the resort. I couldn’t return to the resort. They moved me to a different resort to get some relaxation after which purchased me a brand new ticket and I left that very same day. I wished to remain for one more day, however needed to depart Australia as a result of they had been ready for me exterior the resort. It’s only a sport, man. I went there to struggle they usually’re being unfair.”
Ultimately, Walker secured his first win below the UFC banner and felt it bought him “extra hype” amongst followers, so he jokes “the slap was price it.” Walter is now again to the profitable column and now 12-1 as an expert fighter, rebounding from a call loss to Lukasz Brzeski in his promotional debut.
“Mentally talking, I feel my final struggle was my hardest ever as a result of I used to be an underdog, I used to be coming off a loss, and I used to be being closely criticized,” Walker mentioned. “I used to be preventing [in Tafa’s] nation, being booed and cursed at by 20,000 individuals. I used to be like, brother, it’s kill or get killed. I knew I’d lose if we went to a call. My coach mentioned I’d get reduce if I misplaced, so I went there to kill or get killed.
“My coach informed me to get him down and submit, however he closed his guard and I couldn’t get out of there. I wished to take his again and go for the rear-naked choke, however, like, I’m already screwed right here, coming off a loss, let’s go for the foot. I’ll await the ultimate seconds and assault. If I find yourself on the underside, the spherical might be over. If I catch it, I’ll break his foot. If we go to the second spherical, he’ll have a busted knee or a damaged foot. I went to interrupt it. He didn’t even faucet, he screamed. I wished actually to harm him.”
