In the beginning, I was one of many UFC fighters training at Tristar Gym in Montreal, Quebec, owned by the famous Firas Zahabi. Coach Zahabi has trained many elite fighters and was the head coach of the Greatest Of All Time, Mr. Georges St-Pierre.

During my UFC career, I was plagued by injuries. In 2015, I tore my shoulder and required surgery. This made my life quite difficult as I relied on fighting to support myself, and the surgery required at least a year of recovery. Staying in Montreal became impossible, as most of my network was back in B.C., where I grew up.

I had to choose between staying in Montreal with elite coaching but no money or moving back to B.C. where I had financial support but no coaches. I decided the best move was to return home, recover from the surgery, make some money, and act as my own coach once I could fight again.

Initially, I planned to teach classes at other gyms rather than open my own. However, after speaking with some gym owners, it became clear that this wouldn’t work. Opening my own gym seemed to be the only viable option, despite being daunting due to my lack of money and business knowledge.

I informed Coach Zahabi of my plan to return to Vancouver to open a gym and continue my career. Incredibly, he supported my decision and allowed me to open under the Tristar Gym name. Thus, Tristar Gym West Coast was born!

After moving back and setting up the gym, we opened on August 1, 2016. The first few years were challenging as I was much better at coaching and fighting than at running a business.

In 2017, I returned to fighting in the UFC while running the gym full-time. I coached myself and trained a squad of young fighters. I won significant fights, and the gym grew.

In 2018, I fought my last two fights, one against Islam Makhachev (current UFC champion), which I lost by armbar, and the other against Rustam Khabilov, who “won” by decision. This ended my UFC career, and after a year of searching for a suitable fight, I decided to retire. Although I was upset about ending my fighting career, it allowed me more time and energy to dedicate to business and coaching.

Since then, our tribe and vibe have continued to grow. Our Kids MMA and Teens MMA programs have flourished, and our Jiu Jitsu, Boxing, and Muay Thai Kickboxing programs are bursting at the seams. Our amateur and pro fighters are making a name for themselves in the fight game.

All good things take time. I am so proud of our gym and how far we’ve come. I am proud of our instructors and competitors and their skill growth. Most of all, I am proud and very grateful for the vibe of our tribe and the community we have created.