Volk Does it Again!
What makes Alexander Volkanovski special isn’t a single elite skill or genetic gift, he simply outworks everyone Throughout his career, he has beaten fighters who were technically superior grapplers, wrestlers, and strikers on paper. The danger for naturally gifted fighters is that they regularly dominate their training partners. Winning easily builds supreme confidence, but it can also build a false sense of security. When preparing for someone like Volk, a talented opponent might research him & watch videos & conclude that he lacks an elite pedigree, no high-level wrestling background and no extensive pre-MMA striking career. Inside the octagon, that assumption crumbles. When an opponent lands their best combinations or takedowns (the exact moves that broken their sparring partners in camp) it has no effect. Volk doesn’t break; he just comes back stronger. Having spent years overcoming adversity and fighting from behind, he enters every fight ready to earn the win rather than expecting it. As coaches we often build fighters up by telling them how special or talented they are. But over time, I’ve wondered if this actually hinders them in the long term. Once a fighter believes they are special, it’s easy to stop working as hard. What if, instead, we told them: “You are not special, and you will lose this fight if you don’t work your ass off”? It takes a rare, Volk-level mindset to accept that truth and use it as fuel. That relentless grit is exactly why he is one of the greatest.
Do you need to have been a fighter to be a good coach?
When this subject is brought up, people will always bring up the examples of high-level coaches who never had any fight experience. However, I see these coaches as the exception rather than the rule; for every one successful coach who didn’t have fight experience, there are many more with no experience and sketchy credentials who somehow convince their students to get into the ring. There are various reasons why mma coaches in the past didn’t have fight experience. MMA is a relatively young sport, so for many coaches there just wasn’t the opportunity to fight or compete when they were in their prime. When I had my first amateur mma fights in 2000, there were very few coaches who also had fight experience around. When you look at the vast majority of successful fighters, you will see that they are trained by coaches who have legitimate fight experience rather than just theoretical knowledge. Although it’s obviously possible to coach successfully without fight experience I find that more often than not coaches make up for this lack of experience by creating a mythical background around themselves that convinces the eager young fighter to follow their every word without every questioning the validity of what they are learning. Another reason is that sometimes the best fighters don’t make the best coaches. I definitely agree with this. The best fighters usually are able to pick up skills and techniques very quickly and therefore often lack the patience to break down and coach these skills to less talented or less experienced novice fighters. Coaching is a skill that needs to be learned and practiced just like any other skill. Often a fighter feels that once he’s had a successful fight career he can just lazily turn up to the gym and show what he knows and that’ll be enough, but usually this doesn’t work well. I can say that there are many things that I wouldn’t understand about fighting if I hadn’t had a lot of fight experience myself. What it feels like in the weeks leading up, what it feels like to walk into the cage, how you feel between rounds in a tough fight, and what you want or need to hear after a win or a loss. The problem with coaching when you haven’t fought is that you don’t know what you don’t know. There are many hypothetical techniques, tactics, and strategies that should work in a fight because they work well in training or sparring, but a real fight is a much different thing. If you have real fight experience, you will realise this, whereas inexperienced coaches usually have to figure it out the hard way.
Focus on Improvement
The key to improvement is Deliberate Practice. Instead of just turning up to class and mindlessly hitting pads or doing arm-locks. It means concentrating and being focused on what you are doing with the specific intention of improving your performance. Here are some of the basic requirements of Deliberate Practice : A – Goals. Have a clear goal of what you are working towards – Its important that this goal is something that will be quite difficult for you to achieve because this will force you grow and improve. Eg. Win all my matches by submission at my next BJJ tournament. You must also have ‘mini-goals’ for each practice session Eg. Today I want to use that Combination/ Technique / Guard Pass at least 5 times in Sparring. B – Concentration and Effort. When you are training in the gym, you are fully concentrating on what you are doing and giving it your full effort. If you are having a chat with your training partner while hitting pads or drilling don’t expect to see great results. C – Feedback This could be from either a coach or from a training partner or alternatively you can just figure out how to give yourself feedback. Eg. ‘I tried that arm-lock but my sparring partner got out of it and passed my guard – therefore what did I do wrong and what do I need to fix before next time’. D – Repetition. Lots of Repetition but not Mindless Repetition. You need repetitions with Reflection (‘did I do that properly or did I screw it up?’) and Refinement (‘This time I’ll make sure I keep my elbow close to my hip’)
MMA 4 Week Intro Program
Ready to Step Into the World of MMA? DKMMA Fairfield Melbourne is excited to launch a 4-Week MMA Intro Program—perfect for beginners who want to train like a fighter and build real skills in a fun, safe, and supportive environment! ✅ 4 Weeks of MMA Fundamentals ✅ 3 Classes Per Week ✅ All for just $199! Whether you’re looking to boost your fitness, learn practical self-defence, or challenge yourself with something new, this is your chance to dive into the world of Mixed Martial Arts—no experience needed! Beginner-friendly and inclusive Located in Fairfield, Melbourne Limited spots available! Comment below, message us, or visit our page to secure your spot! 👇 Train smart. Train hard. Let’s go! 🥊
BJJ 4 Week Intro Program
READY TO START YOUR BJJ JOURNEY? Join our Beginner BJJ Intro Program Class Schedule: Mon & Wed at 7:15 PM, Sat at 10:00 AM What’s Included: 4 weeks of expert instruction FREE BJJ uniform (Gi) Classes taught by experienced black belt coaches Build confidence, strength, and skills in a supportive environment Only $199 for 4 weeks! Whether you’re looking to try something new or get into better shape, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is for EVERYONE – no experience required. Come roll with us! Limited spots available; sign up today! https://bjjmelbourne.com.au/bjj-intro-program
Great Performances from our Team at Savage Grappling
Great work to everyone who stepped up to compete today. We were a bit unlucky with a few of the decisions going against us today, but in spite of that, we still racked up a lot of wins & brought home some medals. Special mention to Nikhil, who had a good match against an opponent who had beaten him a few months ago & this time Nikhil won by 18-2 Also to Jim, who looked very calm & technical in all his matches today, got lots of wins, and somehow missed out on a medal. Also, Liam, who stepped up for his first-ever competition today, looked very impressive, winning his first-ever BJJ match via Ezekiel choke in less than a minute & took home the silver medal. Good work to everyone who stepped up today. You all looked great even if you didn’t get the results you wanted today. Our team is looking stronger & stronger every time we compete & you can see the hard work we’re doing is paying off. On Tuesday night, when I looked around the room, I saw neatly 30 people on the mat training hard & also at least half of those on the mat had competed within the last year. This is the reason for our improved competition results. If you’re training in a room full of experienced & active competitors/ fighters, then it’s very hard not to improve & that’s how everyone gets better Our next big competition will be Grappling Industries on 8th November. Let’s try to get our biggest-ever team signed up for that.
KIDS BJJ CLASSES AT DKMMA
Kids BJJ Classes start again for Term 4 this week. Why should your child learn BJJ at DKMMA? Give your child an outlet to utilise their natural leadership skills Equip your child with some basic self defence skills so they feel safe and confident Perhaps your child has a lot of pent up energy and doesn’t know how to deal with it correctly. 8 years & above Monday & Wednesday: 4:15pm – 5:00pm Saturday: 9:15am Under 8 years Tuesday & Thursday: 4:15pm – 5:00pm Saturday: 8:30am If you’re interested in getting your kids started, you can book a 2 Week Trial via this link: See less
Teens MMA is Back Next Week!
Teens BJJ & MMA are back next week! School term is starting, and our Teens MMA classes kick off this Tuesday at 5:00 PM! Whether your teen wants to build real self-confidence, stay active, or learn effective martial arts skills in a disciplined environment, we’ve got them covered. Teens Schedule: • BJJ: Mondays & Wednesdays @ 5:00 PM • MMA: Tuesdays & Thursdays @ 5:00 PM Claim a 2-Week Trial for your teen to get started:
Teens BJJ & MMA back next week!
Teens BJJ & MMA are back next week! School term is starting, and our Teens Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu classes kick off this Monday at 5:00 PM! Whether your teen wants to build real self-confidence, stay active, or learn effective martial arts skills in a disciplined environment, we’ve got them covered. Teens Schedule: • BJJ: Mondays & Wednesdays @ 5:00 PM • MMA: Tuesdays & Thursdays @ 5:00 PM Claim a 2-Week Trial for your teen to get started:
The Story So Far: The MMA Champions I’ve Trained
Genuine coaching depth cannot be fast-tracked or faked. It comes down to decades of real-world, hands-on experience Here is a look at some of the fighters I’ve had the privilege of coaching over the years. Although I’ve trained many other fighters along the way, I’ve narrowed this list down to title winners & those signed to International Promotions. Ryan Robinson: (Cage Rage & Cage Warriors, Trained with me 2002-2006) I was appointed MMA coach at Carlson Gracie London. Ryan was the very first fighter I truly coached and cornered, transitioning from being a primary training and sparring partner to leading his fight prep. Ryan won the Cage Rage Heavyweight Title in September 2004 and fought several top athletes, including Ian Freeman—the first-ever UK fighter in the UFC. Brayden Summers (Kings of Kombat & Martial Combat, Trained with me 2009–2011) Amassed a 4–0 official record, including a decisive victory on Martial Combat in Singapore. He also had several other wins not shown on his record. Brayden stood out as one of the most dominant fighters on the Australian MMA scene at that time. Kenny Yeung (AFC & Legend FC, Trained with me 2009–2012) An experienced Muay Thai striker who expanded his skill set under my guidance to compete in Legend FC. He later relocated to Hong Kong, where he continued competing at a high level through to 2018. Thomas Ruderman (Kings of Kombat & Brace MMA, Trained with me 2010–2012) Won the state MMA title on the Kings of Kombat promotion. Thomas fought tough, high-caliber opponents—including future UFC and ONE FC veterans, building an official 3–2 record alongside winning several additional bouts. Jordan Lucas (AFC, Brace & One FC, Trained with me 2012–2016) Started training with me at just 16 years old. I coached him from his first day on the mats through to winning the BRACE Bantamweight Championship (Australia’s premier promotion at the time) , His title run earned him the #1 ranking in Australia and a contract with ONE Championship, finishing his run under my guidance at 8–2. Anthony Fogas (AFC & Brace, Trained with me 2012–2015) Won a state title by defeating future UFC veteran Ashkan Mokhtarian, building a strong winning streak and positioning himself as a top contender on the Australian scene with dominant Wins on Brace & Hex. Annie Thatcher (Path to Hex, Demolition, Gamma World Championships & UAE Warriors, Trained with me 2018–2023) Compiled an undefeated 7–0 amateur record under my instruction, winning both the HEX Amateur Title and the GAMMA World Championship in Singapore to become my first World Champion. She went on to build a 3–3 professional record against tough international opposition. Mitty Carter (Path to Hex & Demolition, Trained with me 2018–2021) Amassed a 6–1 amateur record, culminating in winning the Demolition Featherweight Championship & becoming the number 1 amateur fighter on the local scene before the COVID lockdowns shut down the local mma scene & he moved back to WA. These results aren’t built on shortcuts; they come from over 30 years of high standards, pressure testing, and real experience. From taking complete beginners to world titles to guiding elite athletes through championship bouts, my focus remains unchanged: building complete, resilient martial artists who perform when it counts. I’m just as focused as ever on training the next generation of champions. Who will be next? ‘Systems are for people who care about winning repeatedly. Goals are for people who care about winning once’ – James Clear Trust the System.