“Who is Your Coach’s Coach?”

Why It Matters and Why You Should Know.

A couple weeks ago I posted a video of myself training with one of my mentors, Kru Danny Chacon out of Six Blades Muay Thai in Denver, Colorado. 

Truthfully, the caption I included with the video sums up everything I wanted to put in this blog…so I’ll just share it below. 

🌟 Seeking a coach who’s always at the top of their game? Then you should ask, “Who’s your coach’s coach?” 🤔Understanding where your coach turns to for growth is key. Your Coach should be consistently learning & improving their own skills-on the mat & as a coach. Look at who they trust to guide them to understand more about what you can expect to learn. So, when choosing your guide for your martial arts journey, don’t just settle for good-find greatness! 🏆🥊

Ultimately, the best coaches remain steadfast in their pursuit of personal improvement. 

And behind every great coach lies a network of mentors—seasoned practitioners and experts whose insights and wisdom shape their coaching philosophy and approach to coaching YOU. 

Knowing who your coach is mentored by should foster a sense of trust, confidence and credibility in your coach’s guidance as they are learning from experienced practitioners who have walked the path before them.

The importance of a coach regularly continuing their education and training cannot be overstated. It is a testament to their dedication to the craft, their students, and the martial arts community at large. By embracing lifelong learning, coaches embody the essence of martial arts philosophy—perpetual evolution, mastery, and the unyielding pursuit of excellence.

So again, I’ll ask you- who’s your coach’s coach? 

Here are just a few that I’ve learned from over the years…

13. Coach Kiran Fitzgibbons– Owner & Head Coach of Combat Sports Academy in Dublin, California. Coach K is Coach Jamie’s primary mentor since 2017 and where many of the training and fighting systems used at KruFit come from. Coach K has coached many world champions along with former and current UFC, Bellator, PFL and ONE Championship fighters including Kevin Ross, Eddie Absolo, Miriam Nakamoto, Gaston Balanos, Jessica Rose-Clark, Andre Fili, Adam Piccolotti, Amber Lei Brock, among so many others.

12. Henry Cejudo is an American MMA fighter and Olympic Wrestling Gold Medalist. He made history by becoming the UFC Flyweight Champion and later captured the UFC Bantamweight Championship, becoming the fourth simultaneous two-division champion in UFC history.

11. Charles Johnson– is an American Muay Thai fighter who was one of the first Americans to live, train and fight in Thailand and compete on Max Muay Thai. He now focuses on coaching with his wife at their gym in Texas.

10. Eddie Silky Smooth Absolo– is an American Muay Thai fighter having fought on ONE Championship most recently against Luke Lessei. 

9. Ivan Hippolyte– is a 5x World Champion from Holland and is a true legend of Dutch Kickboxing. He was an active teammate of fellow elite fighters such as Ernesto Hoost and Gilbert Yvel before moving on to coaching. 

8. Damien Trainor– is regarded as a United Kingdom Muay Thai legend. His fight career spanned over three decades where he claimed two World Titles and four European titles. Beyond his fight career he has proven to be one of the most sought after coaches in the industry with his unique combination of traditional muay thai, western boxing and dutch style kickboxing. 

7. Firas Zahabi– is a Canadian mixed martial artist and a highly respected MMA coach. Zahabi’s most notable student was Georges St-Pierre. 

6. Damien Alamos– is a French Muay Thai fighter. He is a 5x World Champion and 3x Lumpinee Champion and was the first westerner to win and defend the Lumpinee Title. 

5. Joseph “Bazooka Joe” Valtellini– is a Canadian kickboxer and coach. He is a former GLORY Welterweight World Champion and is the current commentator for Glory Kickboxing. 

4. Master Yod– is a Thai fighter and coach often referred to as the “trainer of world champions” and has trained fighters such as Georges St. Pierre, Rafael Dos Anjos, Zhang Weili, Petr Yan, along with K1 World Champion Gokhan Saki and current ONE Championship World Champion Nong O Gaiyanghadao. He was the head trainer at Evolve MMA in Singapore for several years before recently opening his own gym, Pineapple MMA. 

3. Artem Levin– is a Russian Muay Thai and kickboxing fighter & 16x World Champion- including Glory Kickboxing’s “Last Man Standing” tournament where he beat Flip Verlinden, Joe Schilling and Alex Pereira all in one night.

2. Kevin “The Soul Assassin” Ross– is an American Muay Thai fighter and considered to be one of the early pioneers of American Muay Thai. He is a former Bellator Kickboxing Featherweight champion, WBC International Champion, WBC USA National Champion, FIDAM Welterweight champion and the United States Muay Thai Federation Welterweight champion.

1. Liam Harrison– is a Muay Thai fighter from the United Kingdom. He is an 8x World Champion and considered one of the greatest western Muay Thai fighters of all time. He currently fights for ONE Championship and has fought other notable fighters such as Saenchi, Nong O, Rodlek and Fabia Pinco among many, many others. 
Ready to start training?
Just send us a quick email to info@krufit.com and say “I’m ready!” and we’ll take care of the rest!