Gilbert "El Nino" Melendez, MMA Coach in San Francisco
Gilbert Melendez is one of the most accomplished lightweights in MMA history. He coaches at Skrap Pack Mission in San Francisco's Mission District.
A two-time Strikeforce Lightweight Champion with a professional record of 22–8, Gil built his reputation as one of the best fighters in the world during an era when the lightweight division was stacked with elite competition. He won his first Strikeforce Lightweight Championship from Clay Guida in 2006 and went on to defend the title four times against Shinya Aoki, Tatsuya Kawajiri, and Jorge Masvidal, among others. When Strikeforce merged into the UFC in 2013, Melendez received an immediate title shot against Benson Henderson, a testament to how dominant he had been outside the organization.
Gil trained alongside Nick and Nate Diaz under Cesar Gracie, forming the core of what became known as the Skrap Pack, Bay Area MMA's most influential training collective. That lineage runs directly through Skrap Pack Mission today.
At the gym, Gil brings championship-level perspective to the MMA program, working with serious competitors and dedicated practitioners who want to understand what elite-level mixed martial arts actually looks like from the inside.