Cole Miller was a standout baseball player growing up but he admits he was never a competitive person. He practiced hard but had no desire to beat anyone while competing. That changed when he was finally able to train as a fighter. That is when the person he was competing against became himself.
Cole began his training as many people did in the early 2000s, forced to travel for an hour or more, multiple times a week, just to find a place to learn. Cole's instructor at the time wanted to train people who wanted to fight, either in the ring or in class. This led to intense training sessions, often for hours on end, that would leave Cole dehydrated and so spent, that he couldn't make it across the mat to his Gatorade. But that is what Cole wanted. He was driven to test himself. So much so that his desire to fight was not to just beat his opponent but to see if there was actually anyone out there that could hurt him.
After a brief and very successful amateur career, Cole went pro. He had several fights under his belt when a new opportunity came his way. While on a trip to a fight Cole stopped at the world-famous American Top Team gym in Coconut Creek Florida. Cole decided to switch teams at that point and became a member of one of the most highly regarded MMA gyms in the world. This is when the evolution of Cole's MMA development took off. He was now able to train multiple times a day with world-class and world champion instructors in boxing, wrestling, and Jiu Jitsu.
Cole took his new skills and made his way on to the 5th season of TUF, the Ultimate Fighting Championship's reality TV series. Season 5 had a roster of fighters who would make huge names for themselves and have great careers in the UFC. Gray Maynard, Matt Wiman, Joe Lauzon, Nate Diaz, Manny Gamburyan, are just some of the amazing fighters Cole was able to share the national stage with. Although Cole didn't win the series he did go on to an impressive 20 fight career with the UFC.
Cole is now a 2nd degree Black Belt in BJJ and is the owner and head instructor at American Top Team affiliate Miller Martial Arts and Fitness in Bonaire, Georgia. Cole is dedicated to training his students and has a very supportive and giving coaching style with vast knowledge and great philosophy on BJJ, instruction, and coaching.
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