You might have seen the name Trevor Wittman flying around in the world of the UFC and being mentioned as the winner of various “Coach of the Year” awards.
Trevor Wittman is a professional MMA coach who has taught high-level UFC fighters like Kamaru Usman and Rose Namajunas to win championship belts and defend them. He is the founder and head coach behind the ONX Sports gym, where he teaches.
In the rest of this article, I’ll break down his biography and life in this Trevor Wittman profile.
So keep on reading if you want to understand more about one of the top MMA coaches in the world right now!
Table of Contents
Trevor Wittman’s History
Trevor is an American boxing and MMA coach. He was born on March 5th, 1974, in Denver, Colorado.
Trevor attended Berlin High School in Connecticut, where he trained and competed in Wrestling. In his early twenties, he completed college studies at The Art Institute of Colorado.
Somewhere along the line, Trevor became an avid Boxer and began his training to become a professional.
While training to become a professional boxer, he retired due to a hyper-inflated lung. Since then, he moved to become a coach and went on and founded T’s K.O. Fight Club, the Grudge Training Center, and now ONX Sports.
Wittman splits his time between developing the products of the ONX Sports brand, much of which he began by hand stitching himself, and continuing to train professional MMA fighters in the UFC.
He has continued to prove his coaching ability and significantly impacted the development of intelligent fighters inside the octagon.
He has coached the likes of Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone, Rose Namajunas, Stipe Miocic, Georges St-Pierre, Justin Gaethje, and Kamaru Usman.
He has coached fighters to 21 World Championships and continues to train some of the greatest performing fighters today. It seems likely to me that his record will only increase even more.
Coaching Awards
Trevor’s successes haven’t gone unnoticed by his peers, as he has been acclaimed multiple times as one of the best MMA coaches in the world.
In recent years, Trevor Wittman has won multiple “Coach of the Year” awards, including:
- Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year in 2017
- Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year 2019-2020
- Shawn Tompkins Coach of the Year award in 2021
- MMAjunkie.com Coach of the Year 2021
- Yahoo! Sports Coach of the Year 2021
- Combat Press Coach of the Year 2021
It seems only likely that Wittman can be expected to continue winning more awards as his fighters continue to perform at such a high level.
Trevor Wittman’s Fighters
Trevor already has a long coaching career, training dozens of fighters to championship quality.
Here is a list of all the notable MMA fighters Wittman has trained:
- Kamaru Usman
- Rose Namajunas
- Stipe Miocic
- Matt Mitrione
- Roy Nelson
- Tyler Toner
- Gerald Harris
- Pat Barry
- Tyler Stinson
- Luke Caudillo
- T.J. Dillashaw
- James McSweeney
- Todd Duffee
- Donald Cerrone
- Jon Madsen
- Neil Magny
- Jared Hamman
- Ed Herman
- Justin Salas
- Georges St-Pierre
- Brandon Thatch
- Rashad Evans
- Shane Carwin
- Melvin Guillard
- Justin Gaethje
- Brandon Girtz
- Nate Marquardt
- Duane Ludwig
- Cody Donovan
- Alvin Robinson
- Bobby Lashley
- Keith Jardine
- Paul Buentello
- Justin Wren
- Kevin Burns
- Mike Wessel
And here are other notable names that ‘Wittman has trained in Boxing:
- Manuel Perez
- Verno Phillips
- Juan Carlos Candelo
- DeAndrey Abron
- Garret Ratt
This total of 41 fighters across (mostly) MMA and Boxing. But who’s counting, right?
Trevor Wittman’s Gym: ONX Sports
Trevor Wittman founded and is the head coach of the ONX Sports gym, also known as “ONX Labs,” where he trains professional UFC fighters like Justin Gaethje, Rose Namajunas, and Kamaru Usman. Before ONX, he also founded T’s K.O. Fight Club and the Grudge Training Center.
The ONX Sports gym is in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, and has been situated since October 2016.
Previously, Trevor ran the Grudge Training Center between January 2008 to November 2016, which was also located in Wheat Ridge, Colorado.
And before those gyms, Trevor ran the T’s K.O. Fight Club between January 2005 to January 2008 in Denver, Colorado.
ONX Sports Gym Fighters
The ONX Sports gym’s fighting team currently consists of Kamaru Usman, Rose Namajunas, Justin Gaethje, Curtis Blaydes, Dan Ige, Mallory Martin, Austin Hubbard, Cory Sandhagen, Rafa Garcia, and Matthew Lopez.
Other fighters often walk through ONX Labs’ doors to coach, train, and trade skills like in any other MMA gym. So from time to time, you might see new faces appear on the ONX Sports Instagram.
Trevor Wittman’s Net Worth
Trevor Wittman’s net worth is in the region of $1.5-1.8 million U.S. dollars. Most of his earnings come from success as an MMA coach and his ONX Sports brand that innovates and custom-manufactures protective equipment for fight training.
This number is a rough estimate. It could increase yearly as his fighting team participates in more high-level UFC events.
When fighters like Kamaru Usman, Justin Gaethje, or Rose Namajunas compete at the top level and earn a healthy fighter pay packet, they will share some of that with their head coach and gym.
So how much does Trevor Wittman make? He can earn up to two million dollars annually, depending on the number of events his fighters appear in.
Trevor Wittman’s Wife & Family
Trevor married his fiance, Christina, in 2005. Christina has worked as a model and enjoys music, snowboarding, and caring for the pair’s two children, Terrence, and Marissa Wittman.
Trevor’s son, Terrence Wittman, is a professional photographer and shoots most of the photos you’ll see from inside the ONX Sports gym.
You can find more of his work on his Instagram and the ONX Sports Instagram.
Trevor Wittman’s Training & Coaching Methods
Trevor Wittman has a unique ability to help his fighters correct any holes in their fighting game. At the same time, helping them learn how to enjoy their work. Ringside, Trevor has been known to tell his fighters to “enjoy themselves” and trusts they already know how to win.
When he sits ringside with his fighters between rounds, the advice he’s sharing is often quick, to the point, and mostly about keeping them emotionally connected to enjoying the experience and doing what they do best.
Some of my favorite quotes from Trevor talking to his fighters in the corner:
- “Stay sharp, baby.”
- “Don’t make a mistake. Intelligence wins championships!”
- “I love you. Thank you for listening.”
- “That whole round, you tried to kill him! Put it on his neck!”
- “Look at me. I love the fun.”
- “Are you f*****g having fun?”
- “You are the best in the world.”
- “You look f*****g great. Here we go, baby, round 2!”
- “Keep touching the body. It’s what we do!”
Trevor generally also has a great relationship with his fighters. Laughing and joking around with his fighters is a common theme in their training. His friendship with Justin Gaethje is often the talk of fans as their father-and-son lookalike bond is something to admire.
Wittman’s coaching and cornering methods work. They simply get the best out of his fighters. No less than his recent performance leading Justin Gaethje, Rose Namajunas, and Kamaru Usman to 3 victories under one main card at UFC 268.
Wittman’s coaching style focuses on crucial fundamentals of movement, controlling the distance, and pivoting off centers for counters.
His coaching talks a lot about the different kinds of positioning and stances you can take and their benefits and negatives.
I love the way Trevor thinks and his thoughts on the “train tracks” concept, whereby you are standing with your feet aligning with your opponent’s.
Being on the tracks puts you in an excellent position for striking accurately. Still, it also means making it easier for your opponent to stand in their tracks.
His thoughts on “being on the fence” are also great (when your feet are more laterally positioned).
This stance works excellent when you’re backed up against the fence in MMA for moving laterally to get out of your opponent’s attack. Still, it also puts you off-balance backward and opens to strikes in your vertical midline.
These fundamental ideas are just a taste of what makes Trevor among MMA’s best striking coaches.
While he may not be a mastermind in grappling proficiency, his stand-up knowledge is outstanding.
Trevor Wittman’s Online Training Courses
Trevor Wittman has created two courses alongside Justin Gaethje that can be taken online and in the comfort of your own home. The Footwork Blueprint and Secrets Of A Champion Balance are available via BJJ Fanatics and Dynamic Striking.
This is one of the few ways to get expert training with the man himself; you can do it anytime and anywhere.
Analysis & Commentary For The UFC
Trevor has even been a part of UFC commentary during many fights, offering a little third-party insight and analysis about what’s going on in the fight while it happens.
Even when Trevor isn’t cornering one of his fighters, we still get his research in-between rounds from a coaching perspective.
So we are getting commentary from ex-pro like Daniel Cormier and Michael Bisping and the coaching perspective from Trevor Wittman.
It adds a lot more quality to the events commentary as we learn more about how the coach thinks and what suggestions they might make.
Training Equipment Innovation with ONX Sports
Trevor Wittman has been at the front of innovation in MMA gear. He has produced specialized boxing gloves, shin guards, and headgear versions. Most notably are his success with the ONX boxing gloves.
Trevor has also been busy developing the MMA gloves that he has tried to bring into the UFC. His patented MMA glove is designed to better protect the small hand muscles and bones and prevent eye pokes significantly.
His success with leading professional fighters to become champions can only help his advancements in MMA training gear with ONX Sports.
These new MMA training inventions will hopefully become more commonplace, as they look very promising to keep fighters injury-free.
If Trevor’s professional team is using the ONX gear successfully to stay injury-free and win championships, then I’d say it’s up there as best-in-class for protective gear for the rest of us, too.
Common Questions About Wittman & ONX Sports
Finally, let’s clear up some of the most common questions about Trevor Wittman and his gym, ONX Sports.
Was Trevor Wittman a fighter?
Trevor Wittman was training to become a professional Boxer once upon a time. Sadly, he was forced to quit fight training because of a hyper-inflated lung. He moved into coaching, where he found his excellence as a trainer.
How many fighters does Trevor Wittman have?
Wittman typically has ten fighters in his fighting team at any time. The fighters can change over time as different athletes travel to train with him and benefit from his skills. Fighters like Justin Gaethje, Kamaru Usman, and Rose Namajunas have been with him for a long time.
Who does Trevor Wittman train?
Trevor Wittman currently trains Kamaru Usman, Justin Gaethje, Rose Namajunas, Curtis Blaydes, Austin Hubbard, Dan Ige, Cory Sandhagen, Mallory Martin, Rafa Garcia, and Matthew Lopez.
What gym does Justin Gaethje train at?
Justin Gaethje trains at the ONX Sports gym in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. The ONX Sports gym is run by head coach Trevor Wittman.
Trevor Wittman is Justin Gaethje’s coach and has been for the last several years.
What are Trevor Wittman gloves called?
Trevor Wittman has developed several different gloves intended for MMA training. These are the Apex Training Gloves, the X-Factor Training Gloves, the New Era MMA gloves, and most recently, the new X-4 Training Gloves.
Is Trevor Wittman a good coach?
Trevor Wittman is often considered one of the best MMA coaches in the world. The fact that he has earned 6+ coaching awards in recent years as “Coach of the Year” confirms this theory of his being a good, even great, coach.
Final Thought
It seems pretty clear to me that Trevor is one of the top MMA coaches in today’s fight game.
He has successfully coached the likes of Kumaru Usman and Rose Namajunas to titles, and their quality of fighting ability seems to surpass many of their competition.
Having a good base as a fighter is essential. Still, Trevor Wittman’s coaching methods clearly take these fighters to a new level. It’s a dream of mine to train with this man someday, and it probably should be for you, too!