[h=1]MMA10: Top 10 MMA coaches[/h][h=3]Who are the 10 guys who best prepare and inspire MMA fighters?[/h]
By Adam Hill/T.R. Foley | ESPN Insider
Editor's Note: Insider presents MMA10, a weekly top-10 poll of MMA fighters, trainers and coaches on a variety of topics. This week: Top 10 MMA coaches.
What fighters do inside the ring is often just a product of the work they put in during their training camps. Like any other professional athletes, fighters need good leadership to ensure that they are in shape, technically sound and filled with courage on game day.
Charged with preparing professional fighters are their coaches. One part strategist, one part guru and another part CEO, these men take the best athletes in the world and ready them for fight night and know them better than anyone else. They all have different styles of leadership -- some specialize in a single martial art while others are fight strategists or emotional gurus, but the results of their coaching are consistent. These guys know how to get their fighters' hands raised.
1. Greg Jackson and Mike Winklejohn | 55 points
To a man, fighters group together the duo of Greg Jackson and Mike Winklejohn like Bert and Ernie. Inseparable. Jackson has long been in the spotlight for giving raw talent the space and confidence necessary to flourish, while Winklejohn works the bags to give well-trodden fighters sharper strikes.
Good things happen under the psychological management of Jackson and the crisp technique of "Wink." Jon Jones has become a legend, while fighters like Clay Guida and Donald Cerrone have outperformed expectations to become title contenders.
2. Firas Zahabi | 49 points
Zahabi-trained athletes are similar to Jackson's in terms of composure and match planning. Whether it's St. Pierre, MacDonald or Miguel Torres, his athletes always maintain a high level of fitness, have active ground-and-pounds and are always hunting for (safe) submissions. St. Pierre and now MacDonald are known for their clear heads inside the Octagon, an attribute that allows them to see more opportunities late in a fight.
Even when they are criticized for playing it safe, Zahabi's fighters still win their bouts decisively, as evidenced by St. Pierre's five-round unanimous decision of Josh Koscheck at UFC 124, where the challenger had to be driven home due to a pulverized ocular.
3. Bob Cook | 44 points
Co-founder of American Kickboxing Academy, Bob Cook has cornered some of the most talented fighters in the game. Though "Crazy" Bob Cook is a former fighter who heads up the scouting of new talents for AKA, he's best known to his fighters as an all-around coach, conditioning master and, most important, friend. As Daniel Cormier said, "Bob Cook is my BOY."
Cook's coaching starts with recruiting, where he's been committed to signing former wrestlers (e.g., Josh Koscheck, Cain Velasquez, Daniel Cormier). They have remained loyal to him because he provides them with accurate counsel on the machinery of MMA.
4. Ricardo Liborio | 41 points
Few trainers can claim as much of an impact on the development of MMA as Liborio. The Brazilian native helped open Brazilian Top Team in the '90s before coming to Coconut Creek in 2001 to open American Top Team.
A judo and jiu-jitsu expert, Liborio has overseen the careers of fighters like Thiago Silva, Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva and George Sotiropoulos. In the cage, his fighters tend to mimic his grappling style: force-first, steel-willed and simple but effective jiu-jitsu.
5. Dave Camarillo | 36 points
The Guerrilla jiu-jitsu pioneer recently ended his long relationship with AKA, but his work with the organization and its fighters has been monumental. The expert of the ground game, Camarillo and his style of coaching are based in results first. Find out what works, stick to it and expand.
He's a fluid competitor who loves the submission, as can be seen in his recent book Submit Everyone. Camarillo is happy to think about BJJ as part of the MMA game, but he doesn't teach it as defense -- his mindset is always the same: Offense.
6. Noguiera brothers | 27 points
Like player-coaches of the MLB heyday the Noguiera Brothers are learning by doing. Coaching while fighting is a teaching advantage that gives heft to their instruction as well as a lab for new techniques. Because of their association with Black House, the brothers have access to some of the greatest fighters in the world.
Their boxing in the cage is tight and powerful, and when transferred to their students, like Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva, it adds a level of striking competency that outpaces training in only karate or Muay Thai.
7. Andre Pederneiras | 24 points
Like many coaches on this list, Pederneiras got his start teaching jiu-jitsu, founding the renowned gym and training center Nova Uniao. Pederneiras' jiu-jitsu mentality translates into his fighters thinking about technique before aggression but always capitalizing on opportunities. Jose Aldo displayed Pederneiras' opportunism against Chad Mendes at UFC 142 when his spinning elbow turned a simple mat return defense at the end of the first period into a highlight-reel knockout. Pederneiras focuses on lightweights like Aldo and bantamweight title contender Renan Barao, which gives his fighters better workout partners and in-the-room competition and keeps everyone as speedy as when they first arrived.
8. Rafael Cordeiro | 19 points
The former Chute Box fighter and now owner of Kings MMA has coached several world champions. His fighters tend to be heavy-fisted strikers like Wanderlai Silva, Shogun Rua and Fabricio Werdum, an ironic collection considering the coach's soft-spoken reputation.
Cordeiro has attracted several specialized fighters to his gym specifically to improve their striking, including Mark Munoz (wrestling), Satoshi Ishii (judo) and Febrico Werdum (jiu-jitsu). Werdum has actually earned three knockouts in the UFC, even though he's a two-time ADCC champion. Cordeiro also still trains extensively with the Blackhouse fighters, including longtime friend Anderson Silva.
9. Cesar Gracie | 19 points
Fighters from Gracie's California gym are brash, bold and fearless. Though none are known for their ease with the media, Gracie's fighters are aggressive, and their jiu-jitsu is arguably the best in MMA, but it's their willingness to take punishment and absorb the offensive attacks of their opponents that defines his coaching. Jake Shields' rattling off four takedowns against two-time Olympian Dan Henderson and Nick Diaz's standing in the pocket against heavy hitter Paul Daley on way to a first-round knockout are two recent examples of Gracie's students showing courage by facing and defeating opponents at their own game.
10. Mark Dellagrotte | 17 points
The founder of Team Sityodtong, Dellgrotte is all Muay Thai, all the time. His innovation in bringing pure Muay Thai to the States and into MMA has meant that fighters like Kenny Florian, Frank Mir and Stephan Bonnar have improved clinches and more accurate knees. Florian used Dellgrotte's system to develop the most accurate elbow strikes in MMA, along with a bruising body game via knees. His destruction of Diego Nunes at UFN 107 showcased both and gave other fighters reason to search out Dellagrotte to help improve their striking game.
Adam Hill is a reporter for the Las Vegas ***************.
T.R. Foley is a Chicago-based freelance writer and former Division I wrestler at the University of Virginia.
By Adam Hill/T.R. Foley | ESPN Insider
Editor's Note: Insider presents MMA10, a weekly top-10 poll of MMA fighters, trainers and coaches on a variety of topics. This week: Top 10 MMA coaches.
What fighters do inside the ring is often just a product of the work they put in during their training camps. Like any other professional athletes, fighters need good leadership to ensure that they are in shape, technically sound and filled with courage on game day.
Charged with preparing professional fighters are their coaches. One part strategist, one part guru and another part CEO, these men take the best athletes in the world and ready them for fight night and know them better than anyone else. They all have different styles of leadership -- some specialize in a single martial art while others are fight strategists or emotional gurus, but the results of their coaching are consistent. These guys know how to get their fighters' hands raised.
1. Greg Jackson and Mike Winklejohn | 55 points
To a man, fighters group together the duo of Greg Jackson and Mike Winklejohn like Bert and Ernie. Inseparable. Jackson has long been in the spotlight for giving raw talent the space and confidence necessary to flourish, while Winklejohn works the bags to give well-trodden fighters sharper strikes.
Good things happen under the psychological management of Jackson and the crisp technique of "Wink." Jon Jones has become a legend, while fighters like Clay Guida and Donald Cerrone have outperformed expectations to become title contenders.
2. Firas Zahabi | 49 points
Zahabi-trained athletes are similar to Jackson's in terms of composure and match planning. Whether it's St. Pierre, MacDonald or Miguel Torres, his athletes always maintain a high level of fitness, have active ground-and-pounds and are always hunting for (safe) submissions. St. Pierre and now MacDonald are known for their clear heads inside the Octagon, an attribute that allows them to see more opportunities late in a fight.
Even when they are criticized for playing it safe, Zahabi's fighters still win their bouts decisively, as evidenced by St. Pierre's five-round unanimous decision of Josh Koscheck at UFC 124, where the challenger had to be driven home due to a pulverized ocular.
3. Bob Cook | 44 points
Co-founder of American Kickboxing Academy, Bob Cook has cornered some of the most talented fighters in the game. Though "Crazy" Bob Cook is a former fighter who heads up the scouting of new talents for AKA, he's best known to his fighters as an all-around coach, conditioning master and, most important, friend. As Daniel Cormier said, "Bob Cook is my BOY."
Cook's coaching starts with recruiting, where he's been committed to signing former wrestlers (e.g., Josh Koscheck, Cain Velasquez, Daniel Cormier). They have remained loyal to him because he provides them with accurate counsel on the machinery of MMA.
4. Ricardo Liborio | 41 points
Few trainers can claim as much of an impact on the development of MMA as Liborio. The Brazilian native helped open Brazilian Top Team in the '90s before coming to Coconut Creek in 2001 to open American Top Team.
A judo and jiu-jitsu expert, Liborio has overseen the careers of fighters like Thiago Silva, Antonio "Bigfoot" Silva and George Sotiropoulos. In the cage, his fighters tend to mimic his grappling style: force-first, steel-willed and simple but effective jiu-jitsu.
5. Dave Camarillo | 36 points
The Guerrilla jiu-jitsu pioneer recently ended his long relationship with AKA, but his work with the organization and its fighters has been monumental. The expert of the ground game, Camarillo and his style of coaching are based in results first. Find out what works, stick to it and expand.
He's a fluid competitor who loves the submission, as can be seen in his recent book Submit Everyone. Camarillo is happy to think about BJJ as part of the MMA game, but he doesn't teach it as defense -- his mindset is always the same: Offense.
6. Noguiera brothers | 27 points
Like player-coaches of the MLB heyday the Noguiera Brothers are learning by doing. Coaching while fighting is a teaching advantage that gives heft to their instruction as well as a lab for new techniques. Because of their association with Black House, the brothers have access to some of the greatest fighters in the world.
Their boxing in the cage is tight and powerful, and when transferred to their students, like Lyoto Machida and Anderson Silva, it adds a level of striking competency that outpaces training in only karate or Muay Thai.
7. Andre Pederneiras | 24 points
Like many coaches on this list, Pederneiras got his start teaching jiu-jitsu, founding the renowned gym and training center Nova Uniao. Pederneiras' jiu-jitsu mentality translates into his fighters thinking about technique before aggression but always capitalizing on opportunities. Jose Aldo displayed Pederneiras' opportunism against Chad Mendes at UFC 142 when his spinning elbow turned a simple mat return defense at the end of the first period into a highlight-reel knockout. Pederneiras focuses on lightweights like Aldo and bantamweight title contender Renan Barao, which gives his fighters better workout partners and in-the-room competition and keeps everyone as speedy as when they first arrived.
8. Rafael Cordeiro | 19 points
The former Chute Box fighter and now owner of Kings MMA has coached several world champions. His fighters tend to be heavy-fisted strikers like Wanderlai Silva, Shogun Rua and Fabricio Werdum, an ironic collection considering the coach's soft-spoken reputation.
Cordeiro has attracted several specialized fighters to his gym specifically to improve their striking, including Mark Munoz (wrestling), Satoshi Ishii (judo) and Febrico Werdum (jiu-jitsu). Werdum has actually earned three knockouts in the UFC, even though he's a two-time ADCC champion. Cordeiro also still trains extensively with the Blackhouse fighters, including longtime friend Anderson Silva.
9. Cesar Gracie | 19 points
Fighters from Gracie's California gym are brash, bold and fearless. Though none are known for their ease with the media, Gracie's fighters are aggressive, and their jiu-jitsu is arguably the best in MMA, but it's their willingness to take punishment and absorb the offensive attacks of their opponents that defines his coaching. Jake Shields' rattling off four takedowns against two-time Olympian Dan Henderson and Nick Diaz's standing in the pocket against heavy hitter Paul Daley on way to a first-round knockout are two recent examples of Gracie's students showing courage by facing and defeating opponents at their own game.
10. Mark Dellagrotte | 17 points
The founder of Team Sityodtong, Dellgrotte is all Muay Thai, all the time. His innovation in bringing pure Muay Thai to the States and into MMA has meant that fighters like Kenny Florian, Frank Mir and Stephan Bonnar have improved clinches and more accurate knees. Florian used Dellgrotte's system to develop the most accurate elbow strikes in MMA, along with a bruising body game via knees. His destruction of Diego Nunes at UFN 107 showcased both and gave other fighters reason to search out Dellagrotte to help improve their striking game.
Adam Hill is a reporter for the Las Vegas ***************.
T.R. Foley is a Chicago-based freelance writer and former Division I wrestler at the University of Virginia.
