How long has Justin Gaethje trained with Trevor Wittman?

Justin Gaethje, aptly monikered 'The Highlight', is never involved in a boring fight. His relentless pressure, combined with his willingness to readily engage with his opponents, has made him a favorite of many MMA fans.

He is a former interim UFC lightweight champion and boasts a record of 25-4 with 20 knockouts. Aiding 'The Highlight' in his quest for MMA greatness is coach Trevor Wittman, who sensed his pupil's potential early during Gaethje's career.

Per a report by the UFC, Trevor Wittman has been training Justin Gaethje since 2011. That would mean the lightweight contender has been with the veteran coach for almost 13 years.

In an interview with Zac Pacleb, Wittman described how 'The Highlight's' performance at a 2011 bout under the Ring of Fire banner made him sense his then-future pupil's potential:

"I was blown away by his fighting style. He picked the guy up and slammed him like I'd never seen before. It was so entertaining, and it wasn't even from a striking standpoint. He didn't really know how to strike, but his wrestling was so demolishing and fun to watch, and the way the crowd was into it, I was just blown away."

The MMA coach started working with the promising fighter shortly after.

Gaethje was still wrestling at the University of Northern Colorado at the time but started heading down to Grudge MMA, where he would spend some time learning footwork drills under the MMA coach.

However, once Gaethje graduated, he came to train full-time under Wittman.

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How has Justin Gaethje's career fared under the tutelage of Trevor Wittman?

Justin Gaethje is one of UFC's top stars and has the accolades to boot.

While 'The Highlight' has never won an undisputed UFC title, under the tutelage of Trevor Wittman, the American has compiled an attractive record with wins against numerous legends of the sport.

While Gaethje's early phase in UFC didn't bring positive results, going 1-2 in his first three, 'The Highlight' then turned his fortunes around, registering three consecutive wins to land an interim lightweight title bout against Tony Ferguson at UFC 249 in 2020.

The 35-year-old dispatched the MMA veteran, who was on a 12-fight win streak at the time, via fifth-round TKO. However, in his title unification bout against Khabib Nurmagomedov at UFC 254, 'The Eagle' submitted him in the second round.

A hard-fought win against Michael Chandler in 2021 would once again land him a title shot at UFC 274 in 2022. Unfortunately, for 'The Highlight', he would once again incur a submission loss, this time against Charles Oliveira in the opening round.

Since then, the Arizona native has once again bounced back with two back-to-back wins in 2023, the latter of which earned him the BMF title.