Paul Craig’s Gym and Coaches: Where Does the UFC Middleweight Train At?

UFC 301 is around the corner with some great matchups that is set to happen in Brazil. One of those includes Scotland fighter Paul Craig, who will be taking on one of the best in the middleweight division, Caio Borralho in a fight to increase his rank in the division. As we move closer to the fight, let’s have a look at where the Scottish trains at.

Paul Craig is in the limelight yet again to take in Borralho who is undefeated in his fights under the UFC. Craig has a record of 17 victories and 7 defeats and his dominance in the Octagon is a bit feared among his opponents. His next challenge would set him up for a ranked status under the promotion and this is what ‘Bearjaw’ is looking for. Ahead of their fight let’s have a look at some fighting insights about the Scotland native.

Where does ‘Bearjaw’ fight out of?

Fighting out of Coatbridge Scotland, Paul Craig is one of the best fighters in the country. His journey in UFC started when his head coach took him from no MMA experience to having a superior amateur record of 8-0. Interestingly, all of those wins came by way of a first-round stoppage. ‘Bearjaw’ went 8-0 in a matter of four years and he was finally signed by UFC in 2016.

The Scottish fighter trains at one of the most prestigious MMA gyms in Scotland. The name of the gym is Higher Level Martial Arts which is owned by Dinky Ninja Fight Team. To talk about the exact location then it is located in the Whitburn area of Scotland. Very little is known about his teammates but it is said that Craig likes to company himself with the people from his gym. Nonetheless, who coaches ‘Bearjew’? Let us find out.

All about James Doolan, Paul Craig’s head coach

Paul Craig always states that he has an amazing team and the man who keeps the team together and built Craig into a chiseled fighter is their head coach James Doolan. He is highly praised for his striking abilities and proper training regimen. It must be noted that Doolan was one of the reasons why ‘Bearjaw’ transitioned to the middleweight division.

Craig started his endeavor in the UFC with the light heavyweight division. The division was rough for him but it helped him as much as anyone. After his back-to-back defeats in the division, ‘Bearjaw’ thought that it would be better for him to bounce to the middleweight division. While in conversation with the UFC, Craig explained that his head coach is one of the reasons for his success. “This is the first time where I believe it’s a full camp where I’ve worked with guys at a higher level,” said Craig.

He further added, “James Doolan, my new head coach, is an amazing striking coach but he’s also an amazing MMA coach. He’s taken what makes me Paul Craig and what fans like in [my] jiu-jitsu and added to it. I believe in the last six months since fighting Johnny Walker, my striking has come leaps and bounds. Working with high-level striking coaches, high-level strikers has definitely made a huge difference.”

James Doolan is one of the coaches who shaped Craig into a knockout machine, however, one thing that helped ‘Bearkjaw;’ to gain success at the UFC is his ability to employ BJJ despite his huge size. So, who is the man who trains Craig in BJJ?

Who does Craig train BJJ under?

After securing a massive victory against the former light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill at UFC 263, Craig was the talk of the town due to his submission skills and knockout skills. It was a statement that even Craig has some dangers in MMA grappling. To summarise how the fight went. Craig grabbed Hill’s arm in a deep armbar and managed to dislocate it before the referee could intervene.

The monumental performance by the Coatbridge native was taken into cognizance by his BJJ coach Brian Gallagher who awarded him the BJJ black belt, Craig was not expecting to possess the belt, however, Gallagher witnessed that Craig’s submission technique against Hill was dangerous, and lethal and thus awarded the black belt. Coming into the fight, Craig was a brown belt.

It must be noted that alongside, Brian Gallagher, Craig also trains with Daniel Grey who is a part of the Higher Level Martial Arts gym. Nonetheless, Paul Craig is just days away from facing Caio Borralho who is riding a 7 fight-winning streak in the UFC and has a record of 15 victories and 1 loss.

Who do you think would emerge victorious in their bout? Will it be another victory for Borralho or will it be Craig? State your thoughts in the comments below.