Chris has been coaching and assisting Mark at both the Gloucester Mixed Martial Arts school & the Stroud school, which is held at Stroud Youth Centre, Brickrow (behind the old Stroud Valley school) since March 2006. One of Chris' focus is aiding present & up coming fighters with drills and pad work.

Chris with Ch'e and Jake after their win in Ipswich

12th May 2007

Chris Debieux has succeeded in being one of the few Martial Artists in the country to pass his black belt instructors course in M.M.A, (Mixed Martial Arts), under the lengendary worldwide renowned pioneer of the sport, Mr Mark Weir who was catapulted to fame by obtaining the fastest knockout in the U.F.C, (Ultimate Fighting Championship.)

Chris Debieux, who has been helping Mark Weir to develop his fighters for the past few years now, endured 3 hours of intense physical and mental testing in this final part of the exam of the Range Fighting Programme which was developed by Mark Weir and other top Martial Artists wanting to take Martial Arts into the future, which is Mixed Martial Arts. Chris had to show his skills in kickboxing, using kicks, punches, knee and elbow strikes, also take downs, throws, submission holds, joint manipulation, how to attack, defend, counter attack, coaching and development skills and much more that makes up the Range Fighting Programme.

Chris is proud to open a Mark Weir school in Stroud, being the first person to ever be given permission to teach Mark's techniques outside of Mark's own club in Gloucester. The club has been set up at Stroud Youth Centre behind the old Stroud Valley school in Brickrow, and is being run on Monday and Thursday at 6pm in the evening. Mark Weir will be attending the school every third week himself to oversee and help with the development of the club, also the other coaches and instructors under Mark will be assisting, drawing on their own experiences to help develop the students, plus some of the professional fighters from the Gloucester club will be joining in from time to time including Jake Blyth and Che Mills, who are up and coming fighters that have made a big impact on the M.M.A scene. Chris has been helping coach Che Mills since he started his fighting career, being the only person to do his pad work helping to develop his speed and power.

The Stroud school has already attracted students from all levels, some are competition kick boxers looking to further their own skills or wanting to move into M.M.A, some are beginners wishing to get fit and develop self defence skills and there is also a couple of women learning grappling skills in light of recent attacks in Stroud. There is also to be a childrens class starting in the new year that focuses on self-confidence, anti-bullying techniques and self development. These classes have been a big success already at the Gloucester club, parents have remarked on a noticeable difference within weeks to their children joining the club.