In the midst of the excitement of last night’s UFC on Fox 26 card, there is also some very sad news circulating in the MMA community. According to striking coach Dewey Cooper, who coaches a number of MMA stars such as Francis Ngannou, long-time Xtreme Couture coach Robert Follis has passed away.
For many years, Robert Follis served as a grappling coach at Xtreme Couture, the Las Vegas based gym founded by former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Randy Couture. Though he is widely credited with the team’s resurgence as one of the best in MMA, he recently parted ways with them to pursue other opportunities in the MMA industry.
Got word this morning that my longtime coach passed away.
Robert Follis was a special type of guy who always stuck with you. When I was badly injured, he encouraged me to keep studying fights on the sidelines, knowing it would take me somewhere. Thanks for everything, coach. RIP pic.twitter.com/I33FBkbVUZ
— Dan Tom (@DanTomMMA) December 17, 2017
Can’t believe what I woke up to about Robert Follis. Truly a class act every single time I interacted with him. Great guy to be around and so knowledgeable. The MMA world will not be the same
— Jimmy Smith (@jimmysmithmma) December 17, 2017
At present, the cause of Robert Follis’ passing hasn’t been made public. Whatever the case, the team at BJPenn.com would like to send their sincere thoughts and condolences to the Follis family, and all those who have called him a coach and friend over the years.
This article first appeared on BJPenn.com on 17/12/2017.