Red Hawk Academy prepares Mixed Martial Arts fighters for the big leagues

The Red Hawk Academy in Peoria is making a name for itself in the Mixed Martial Arts world.

As owner and founder Tim Welch tells it, young amateurs from other states are packing their cars up and taking up residence in the Valley to learn from the academy’s accomplished teachers, with their sights on one day capturing the dream of becoming a professional UFC fighter.

Before he became a UFC champion, Sean O’Malley was one of those fighters who packed his bags and came to Arizona to train under the Red Hawk figurehead.

Welch can relate to that desire to train with the best — as a young man, his love for the fight led him to wherever the top trainers happened to be, and eventually to a career in the UFC, fighting al

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