“I haven’t trained martial arts my whole life for a little 5-foot-4 guy to try to punk me out. I’ve trained my whole life and I’m only 34 years old. I’m six foot, 195 pounds” – this is what Tim Welch said in response to Merab Dvalishvili after the latter seemingly invited a fight with him. One thing is clear from the words of the ‘TimboSugarShow’ host. He is no stranger to fighting. So why did he stop? That too when he’s just 34?

There are a few noted names in the MMA coaching sphere 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. Today, let’s shine some light on how he went from combatant to coach.

Has Tim Welch ever fought in the UFC? MMA record

Welch has never stepped foot inside the UFC Octagon as a contender in the promotion. But he has also fought across multiple promotions during his time in professional MMA, including a short stint at Bellator. He fought twice under the banner of Bellator FC, but his skills didn’t seem adequate enough to get him in the win column.

Welch’s first-ever fight in the world of mixed martial arts was a defeat, as he debuted at FightForce back in 2008. But then he went on to win the next 5 of his fights as an amateur contender. With his impressive amateur record, he stepped into the world of professional fighting in 2009 and won the fight with a flurry of punches in the second round.

‘Red Hawk’ made his professional MMA debut as a lightweight fighter 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. It was indeed the loss against Dejan Kajic at Intense Championship Fighting 28 when Welch decided that he had had enough.

The coach then switched gears and fought a couple of grappling bouts at Fight 2 Win and IBJJF Pan American No-Gi Championship. However, he faced defeat in both of the grappling matches. That was when Welch decided to call it quits and focus on coaching the new prospects at the MMA Lab. 

A report from ‘Voyage Phoenix’ details that Welch started off his martial arts training in a local facility. 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 Phoenix’, 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-34-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. 

But where does Welch hail from? Let’s find out!

Tim Welch’s early life and ethnicity

Welch is a Native American who hails from a tribe from the Fort Peck Indian Reservation in Montana. When he enrolled himself as a member of the tribe, he revealed that his father’s side was from Wolf Point Reservation. With the native American blood running in his veins, Welch excelled in wrestling while growing up. 

He turned professional when he was just 19 and with $1000 as his first income from MMA, he decided to quit college and focus on fighting full-time. Needless to say, it was a prime factor in his interest in mixed martial arts. Weighing in on that, he once said, “My Native heritage still affects me. I’m so proud to be Native American and I know that is one of the main reasons I’m tough and have as much heart as I do.”

Now, ‘Red Hawk’ has become a name that’s closely associated with the UFC bantamweight champion. After all, they host their talk show and train together.

Where do Sean O’Malley and Tim Welch train?

Welch trains O’Malley at the MMA Lab, popularly known as ‘The LAB’, at Glendale, Arizona. With John Crouch as the head coach, Jarret Aki as the man for strength and conditioning, and Shane Dalton as the coach for kickboxing, the MMA Lab has given quite a few fighters to the MMA world. Some of the fighters that have highlighted the gym are Kyler Phillips, Mario Bautista, Jared Cannonier, and many more.

But how did Welch meet O’Malley? This is indeed one of the questions that has often boggled the fight fans’ minds.

How did Tim Welch and Sean O’Malley meet?

The first time when Welch met O’Malley was when he was still fighting for Bellator FC, while ‘Suga’ was a 16-year-old amateur fighter. Talking about the time, he said, “I saw him kickboxing, and I thought he was a pretty athletic kid and it looks like he’s pretty comfortable in there. I’m like, we’ll see if he sticks with it.”

But it was a couple of years later when O’Malley fought Luis Carranza at Intense Championship Fighting 10, that O’Malley impressed Welch and urged him to send an invite to his gym. He revealed that ‘Suga’ was pretty active in Montana and as soon as Welch gave him the opportunity to join the prestigious MMA Lab, he was left with no option but to say yes. Welch recalled, “He took the opportunity and came down to train. He got beat up really bad the first week and I didn’t think I’d see him again. And he went back home, saved up $2,000, packed his car and moved down.”

Now, let’s shift our focus to the MMA Lab coach’s love life. Let’s see if he is married or in a romantic relationship.

Who is Tim Welch’s girlfriend?

Tim Welch has been together with his girlfriend, Mariah Morgan, for about a decade now. On episode 113 of the Red Hawk recap, Welch said, “Mariah and I grew together on the come-up. She was working full-time and I was doing my thing fighting. But she really helped out a lot. I really wonder if girls really want a Mr. Perfect.”

It’s not just sticking together since the beginning that kept them together. In an episode of the ‘TimboSugarShow’ from November 2019, the coach revealed that the key to a healthy relationship like his was nothing but quality communication and being able to be one’s true self around their partners.

Now, as O’Malley gets ready to face Merab Dvalishvili and defend his UFC bantamweight championship title, he surely does receive all the support he can from his coach. But is it going to be enough for ‘Suga’ to claim a win at UFC Noche? Only time can tell.