Walker reveals Magomedov repeatedly pulled hair and kneed him during training at GOR MMA

Valter Walker has gone on record claiming that Sharabutdin ‘Shara Bullet’ Magomedov repeatedly fouled him during shared training sessions at GOR MMA in Russia, describing a pattern of hair-pulling and knees to the face that he says was actively encouraged by their coach.

Speaking to Brazilian outlet Sexto Round in the aftermath of Magomedov’s co-headlining bout against Michel Pereira at UFC Baku, the heavyweight Walker said the experience was so persistent that he eventually shaved his head to remove the target.

“Women are the ones who should have long hair; at GOR MMA, everyone is bald for a reason,” Walker said. “When I had long hair, every time I trained with Shara, he would pull my hair and knee me in the face while holding onto it. I’d tell Coach Gor [Azizyan], and he’d applaud Shara — mostly because Shara is his favourite son. I think that’s really wrong, and it was one of the reasons I shaved my head.”

Walker’s comments come directly after Magomedov drew widespread criticism for an eye poke on Pereira during their UFC Baku contest. Rather than treating that incident as an aberration, Walker framed it as consistent with behaviour he witnessed first-hand in the gym. He offered a pointed, if tongue-in-cheek, theory for the recurring fouls.

“I think everyone has a fetish,” Walker said. “For example, in my case, I have ugly feet, so I end up wanting to break other people’s feet. Shara is missing an eye; I think he sticks his fingers in people’s eyes because he wants to blind them. There’s a psychological reason for it, but I’m not a psychologist, so I couldn’t explain exactly what it is.”

When pressed on whether such illegal techniques should be addressed within the gym environment, Walker acknowledged the difficulty of his position as a Brazilian training within a predominantly Russian camp.

“Coach Gor always taught us that the shame of war is losing the war. In war, anything goes,” he said. “These Russians are crazy; I’m in the minority here — I’m Brazilian — so if I talk too much, the guys might cut me. There’s not much I can do.”

The allegations add a new dimension to the scrutiny already surrounding Magomedov following UFC Baku, where his conduct inside the cage drew attention from fans and commentators alike. Neither Magomedov nor coach Gor Azizyan has publicly responded to Walker’s claims.