Valter Walker escalates rivalry with Vitor Petrino: "I want to humiliate him"
The heavyweight says the UFC blocked the matchup in the past and now wants to settle the rivalry in Brazil.
Finally ready to step back into the Octagon after a serious leg injury last year, Valter Walker already has plans for the near future. After months of exchanging provocations with Vitor Petrino online, "The Foot Hunter" wants the rivalry to move from social media to the cage.
That's not all. The Brazilian heavyweight has made it clear he hopes the UFC books the matchup in Brazil, where he plans not only to beat Petrino but to "humiliate" him in front of the home crowd.
Valter Walker Turns Up Heat on Vitor Petrino Rivalry
It all started when Petrino suggested Walker was avoiding ranked opponents and going after easier fights. Since then, the Brazilian heavyweights have traded insults through social media, further fueling the rivalry. Now, Walker has ramped up the rhetoric even more.
Speaking to Ag Fight, The Foot Hunter claimed it was the UFC that blocked their fight previously and expressed his desire to humiliate Petrino in Brazil.
"Vitor Petrino keeps saying I'm avoiding him, but I'm not," Walker began. "It was the UFC that didn't want to make the fight. I'm actually the one teaching him how to use social media. The day I gave him some attention, he gained 4,000 followers. He's a nobody. And then his coach says he has the hardest punch and the highest fight IQ in the UFC? Give me a break. My dream is to fight Vitor Petrino in Brazil so I can show everyone I'm more Brazilian than he is. People keep saying, 'Oh, you're such a Russian fanboy.' Well, if I'm a Russian fanboy, I'm going to break his leg and humiliate him in his own country."
Walker has lived and trained in Russia for several years and is married to a Russian woman, something that has often fueled jokes from fans about his close ties to the country.
Valter Walker Eager to Stay Active after Injury Layoff
After suffering a serious leg injury during his fight against Louie Sutherland in Oct. 2025, where he still managed to win by submission, Walker spent several months recovering and was forced to remain away from the Octagon. Now that he is fully healed, the Brazilian plans to remain active throughout the rest of the year.
Scheduled to face Thomas Petersen Saturday at UFC Abu Dhabi, Walker claimed he still wants to fight twice more before the end of 2026.
"When you're sidelined for that long, especially with a serious injury, it sucks. I want to fight this Saturday and, if everything goes well, I want to fight again in October, also in Abu Dhabi. There's another event there. I want to get active again. I don't have to cut weight. I want to stay busy this year and have three fights. This one and two more."
While Walker returns to action Saturday in Abu Dhabi, Petrino is also looking to continue climbing the heavyweight division and will face Serghei Spivac next August. Whether the UFC decides to book the matchup or not, the rivalry between the two Brazilians shows no signs of slowing down.
