The Ultimate Fighter (TUF): Season 31 returned this week for the fourth episode of the season. Team McGregor is once again still looking for their first win of the season.
This week’s episode will see Dan Henderson protégé Trevor Wells of Team McGregor attempt to make a name for himself at the expense of Team Chandler’s Timur Valiev, a traveled veteran of the PFL and UFC who has not competed since being cut from the UFC last year.
Those with a subscription to ESPN+ can stream TUF 31 on demand.
TUF 31 Episode 4 Recap
This week’s episode is more straightforward than even previous episode of this season with nearly the entire focus revolving around the Wells-Valiev fight. If you recall, Wells and Valiev were originally lined up to fight each other in Episode 2, but a lingering cold sore caused UFC doctors to be unable to clear Wells. However, Wells’ infection subsided within UFC President Dana White‘s allotted time limit, and was able to receive medical clearance. As a result, the fight with Valiev is back on, but with both fighters having already made the 135-pound weight limit just two episodes prior, a catchweight is being hotly debated.
Here we go – #TUF31 Episode 4 starts NOW!!
[ Watch on @ESPN in the US and @UFCFightPass internationally 📺 ]
— The Ultimate Fighter (@UltimateFighter) June 21, 2023
White is leaving the exact weight allotment to be decided between the two head coaches, Conor McGregor and Michael Chandler. Chandler initially proposed moving the fight up a weight class to featherweight so both fighters have a limited amount of weight they need to cut and are able to perform at peak conditions. McGregor, however, sees things differently. He and his coaches believe Wells, who has competed at 125 pounds in the past, would have an easier time making the 135-pound limit again than Valiev, who has competed as heavy as 145 pounds in the past.
Conor’s logic, however, isn’t quite sound. While Wells has competed at flyweight in the past, he is the taller fighter and has a frame that is probably better suited to bantamweight regardless. Both fighters would probably be looking at similar weight cuts, but both also figure to be in shape and already proved they can make the weight. The fight was originally postponed through no fault of either side, but particularly not Team Chandler’s, whose fighter, Valiev, was healthy and ready to fight. Therefore, the preference on weight should preside with Team Chandler, though per McGregor’s manager Audie Attar (who is acting as an intermediary between the two camps), McGregor doesn’t seem to see things that way.
Wells and Valiev seem to be friendly in the TUF House, which is wholesome content that is always nice to see. They are talking about their families, and Valiev tells Wells his grandmother introduced him to his future wife. It is at this point we get a deeper look at Valiev’s persona life. He spent the majority of his career training under Mark Henry in New Jersey alongside UFC legend Frankie Edgar and fan favorite Edson Barboza, but has been living and training in Phuket, Thailand at Tiger Muay Thai as of late. He sheds light on what it’s like to train in Thailand, as it is an avid fight community with more than 30 gyms in close proximity to one another. He also details his UFC career to that point, where he holds a decent 2-1-1 record. However, he is essentially 2-2 having been knocked out by Trevin Jones with the result ultimately being overturned due to Jones testing positive for marijuana metabolites. He moved to Thailand after falling to Jack Shore and explained he had not re-signed with the promotion prior to the fight.
Things take a slight turn when Stephen Thompson comes into the gym to help Team McGregor with their timing and footwork. It was a good move for McGregor to bring a talent like “Wonderboy” Thompson, who is just as easily able to articulate the things he does and why he does them as he is able to perform his complex striking style. “Wonderboy” stressed timing and footwork, more specifically when he decides to enter and exit the pocket in his fights. McGregor called “Wonderboy” “a phenomenal technician,” which is true.
Getting his man ready for battle! ⚔️@TheNotoriousMMA helps Trevor Wells prepare for his #TUF31 fight with Timur Valiev
[ Tune into Episode 4 now on ESPN & @ESPNPlus ] pic.twitter.com/YJ22vQTH16
— The Ultimate Fighter (@UltimateFighter) June 21, 2023
Over on the Team Chandler side, Chandler is hyping Valiev’s skillset. His past experience training under Mark Henry shows, as he carries with him a similar skillset to Edgar himself. He is an effective boxer and wrestler who is able to mix both disciplines beautifully at times. Valiev talks about his familiarity with Team Chandler grappling coach Robert Drysdale, having attended a seminar of his in the past back in Dagestan. Chandler sees Wells as a wrestler and nothing more. If this is true, Valiev should be too much for the prospect.
Chandler then meets with one of McGregor’s coaches, Julian Darby, who is helping with the mediation process over the weight limit. McGregor has once again no-showed the negotiations and seems keen on making his demands known remotely. McGregor’s camp continues to insist on holding the fight at 135 pounds, but this appears to be a non-starter for Chandler. He echoes what I mentioned about Valiev being a blameless bystander in this situation and throws out a 144 pound catchweight. He openly questions why he should be willing to make any kind of deal at all. Finally, White appears to have had enough of the back and forth and calls Chandler after the meeting to announce a 142-pound catchweight. It remains to be seen if the agreed upon weight will have any impact on the ensuing fight.
We then get a look at Wells’ road to TUF. He sort of echoes Chandler’s characterization of himself as a wrestler-first fighter, but believes he is a better wrestler than Valiev. He believes his best success will come through using his footwork, some of which he seemingly picked up from the “Wonderboy” seminar, to draw Valiev into his shots while being hard to hit himself. His family dynamic is unique in that he and each of his siblings were adopted. He got into MMA after getting beat up at school in the ninth grade. He trains out of Dan Henderson’s Team Quest training center in Temecula and notes he has spent his entire career there. Teammate Sam Alvey is a noted supporter of Wells.
At the weigh-ins, both fighters check in at 141.5 pounds, meaning the fight will proceed as scheduled at long last. Wells, for the record, weighed 137.5 pounds earlier in the week, so perhaps there was some gamesmanship at play from McGregor’s team in attempting to anticipate a fight at 135 pounds.
Both men have plenty of pressure on their shoulders and plenty to gain from a win. For Wells, he is looking to become the first fighter on Team McGregor to truly impress their coach and deliver a victory. For Valiev, he needs to get his hand raised in order to ensure his path back to the UFC. Wells says he was unfamiliar with Valiev prior to entering the house and considers him a nice guy but is prepared to save the niceties for after he wins.
The Fight
Herb Dean is the referee.
The fighters start the fight methodically, trading kicks before Wells takes over the aggressor. Wells lands the first solid shot of the fight, prompting Valiev to shoot, but Wells is wise to it and is able to keep the fight standing, at least initially. Valiev then continues to forward pressure and begins to backpack wells against the cage. He attempts a rear naked choke, but the effort doesn’t appear to have been too close as White chimes in from cageside how the attempted standing body triangle could be bad for Valiev.
When they separate, Valiev catches Wells low, causing a brief reprieve from the action. It’s been a close round up to this point and there is still plenty of time for either fighter to put a stamp on it. When the action resumes, Valiev seems to be starting to find his range with the striking and is finally able to get Wells down briefly before Wells pops back up. The forward pressure from Valiev is a good look, but as the round comes to an end, it is clearly a tough round to score. Valiev did seem to be finding his footing by the end of the round, though it remains to be seen if it was enough to earn him the round.
Round 2 gets underway with Wells once again coming out as the early aggressor. Valiev, having found his range, seems to be doing well with keeping Wells on the end of his shots, causing Wells to look for a level change. Valiev is wise to the attempt, however, briefly hitting the ground before popping back up against the fence. Wells brief holds a clinch position, but soon breaks it to resume his game plan of hoping to keep the Russian guessing with his movement. The two exchange hard strikes before Valiev finally gets the entry he was looking for, ducking under a shot from Wells to slam his opponent with the most authoritative takedown of the contest.
The fight has now gotten very interesting considering the difference in wrestling styles between the two fighters. Valiev lands in side control and plays with the idea of looking to isolate the neck before returning to half guard. He is landing enough ground and pound to earn him points, though not at the same level of Austin Hubbard last week. He appears unable to get enough separation to posture up and rain down harder shots, but at the same time is having no problem staple gunning Wells to the canvas. He eventually gains mount, but this allows Wells to finally escape, though the time to make a difference in the round is running short. As the fight returns to the feet, both men seem labored, but push forward to land strikes, but nothing that would sway the round one way or the other. That was a clear Valiev round by way of dominance in the grappling.
Both coaches are telling their fighter to be ready for a third round, which is totally possible so long as two judges scored the first round for Wells.
As it turns out, none of them did, and Valiev is able to secure the two-round Unanimous Decision and book his place in the semifinals. Team McGregor remains winless.
Timur Valiev def. Trevor Wells via Unanimous Decision
After the fight, McGregor quietly protests to himself, believing his fighter to have won the first round. White called the first round “a good, even round,” himself, which it was. The problem with a coin flip is that the coin can still come up on heads three times in spite of the 50-50 implied probability.
Valiev is congratulated by his teammates in the back, while Wells is consoled by his three teammates who have already fallen on the sword. “You’re one of us now,” Aaron McKenzie tells him jokingly. Wells seems to regret not initiating the wrestling more, but acknowledges how close the fight was.
Next week will be a can’t miss episode, as Brad Katona, a teammate of McGregor’s at SBG Ireland, is looking to put his real-life teammate in a 5-0 hole when he takes on Ecuador’s Carlos Vera in a 2-3 matchup.
