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The sport of MMA is different from other ones in a number of ways. Apart from all other distinctions, the risk of injuries in MMA is significantly higher than in most other sports played around the globe. Fighters put their bodies at immense risk every time they take to the cage for a bout. Several fighters to date have bitten the dust due to severe injuries, even before they could shine in this sport. However, there are a few noted names as well, who were forced to put an untimely stop to their MMA careers owing to repetitive injuries. The UFC bantamweight kingpin, Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, has a similar story about the end of his professional MMA career.

While most UFC fans have witnessed fighters withdrawing from fights due to injuries, they have also seen their beloved stars making a return. But in Tim Welch’s case, things were a bit different. He had a number of promising performances in the MMA cage as well, before moving on to pursue the livelihood of his choice. Although Welch never made it to the UFC, the heavy strikes that he threw during his own MMA career, might be the reason behind his disciple, ‘Sugar’s’, prowess in striking. Welch revealed that he earned a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu post his pro-MMA career. Currently, he owns and runs a BJJ and MMA gym in Peoria, Illinois.

Early life of Tim Welch: Why did he stop competing professionally?

Most fans might get startled after knowing that Welch is currently just 33. It is less than a number of noted UFC fighters like Justin Gaethje and Dustin Poirier, who are continuing in the sport with dominance. The Montana native Welch also aimed at building such a decorated career in MMA when he started to train in wrestling and kickboxing at the age of 14. These two martial arts became the foundation of his skills in MMA.

A report from ‘Voyage Pheonix’ details that Welch started off his martial arts training in a local facility only. But, after turning 18, he decided to switch over to MMA. The 33-year-old also mentioned that he had his first amateur MMA fight during this time. Welch showcased superb prowess in his amateur MMA career ramping up a commendable record of 9-1. It propelled him to enter professional MMA in the year 2009.

But a large chunk of MMA fans were surprised when ‘Red Hawk’ announced his retirement in 2017. In his talks with ‘Voyage Pheonix’, he labeled his repetitive injuries as the reason behind his untimely retirement from the sport. Welch was just 27 at that time.

In his interview, the now-33-year-old stated, “There have been a lot of struggles in my MMA career, with two complete biceps tears, knee surgeries, and a broken jaw, every time I had to be out for around six months for each injury”. It’s quite apparent that sitting out for such prolonged time spans frequently after his injuries didn’t help his cause. They ultimately led Welch to call off his pro-MMA career.

MMA record of Sean O’Malley’s coach Tim Welch

As already mentioned, a number of UFC fans might be familiar with Welch’s name despite the fact that he never fought for the UFC. ‘Red Hawk’ has also co-hosted his UFC bantamweight champ disciple, ‘Sugar’ Sean O’Malley’s YouTube podcast, ‘TimboSugarShow’ multiple times to date.

But he has also fought across multiple promotions during his time in professional MMA, including a short stint at Bellator as well. ‘Red Hawk’ made his professional MMA debut under ‘Cagesport’ but soon moved on to fight for other promotions like ‘Intense Cage Fighting’ and ‘Fusion Fight League’. He holds a record of 14-6 in his professional MMA career that spanned from 2009 to 2017.

Why was coach Tim Welch warned during Sean O’Malley vs. Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292?

Most fans might have witnessed the coaches and cornermen of fighters shouting out instructions even in between a fight. But did you know that it can also have consequences? It’s perfectly alright till a fighter’s team is instructing their own candidate. But, things took a wrong turn when the noted MMA referee, Mark Goddard, caught Welch while taking to his disciple’s opponent, Aljamain Sterling, during their fight at UFC 292.

The Montana native described the entire incident himself in an interview with ‘MiddleEasy’. He revealed a pattern of Aljo’s attack where he “catches the kick[of his opponents] and runs them into the fence. Cory Sandhagen, TJ Dillashaw, some of his fights he did that”. Welch also said that he “wanted to do something to hesitate him[Sterling] from coming forward so hard”, and yelled, “a ‘Marlon Moraes is coming” at Sterling.

This is what had Goddard shouting at Welch as he said, “Don’t talk to Aljo”. Needless to say, it was more of a stern warning for Welch from Goddard. He later revealed that his words, “might” or “might not have been worth it”. But almost the entire UFC community knows that he did manage to get his preferred outcome with this tactic.

Did you already know about him? Do you think he will return to the MMA cage as he mentioned in the video given earlier?

Watch this Story – Is the Khamzat Chimaev vs. Paulo Costa Fight Happening on UFC 294?

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