David Roy

Dave  Roy is the head coach emeritus at NESF Amherst, and now runs NESF Boston. He joined the gym at the age 19, years before UFC 1. A stellar if unrefined athlete, with a state record for powerlifting (drug free), he took to martial arts better than anyone in the 40-year history of the gym, and would go on to compete successfully in karate, judo, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, submission grappling, and MMA. Today a 3rd-degree black belt in jiu-jitsu, Dave led the evolution of NESF every single step of the way.

He was the first to recognize that mixed martial arts was the future, pushing the gym to adopt this new approach. He was the first to realize that jiu-jitsu was an indispensable art, becoming the first American black belt in Western Massachusetts. He was the first to realize that the Internet was the future, co-founding The UnderGround Forum, and ensuring its success, something that has been cited as vital to the very survival of MMA when the sport was at its lowest. He was the first to serve in the sport as an official, becoming a UFC judge, and the head referee for The DangerZone, Rhode Island Vale Tudo, and NAGA.

Dave is also a monster at the production of content, serving as the inspiration for and technical editor of The Fighter’s Notebook, the first book ever written on the sport. He also authored the exhaustively comprehensive 1001 Submissions book & DVD series, among a number of other media projects.

An opportunity arose recently in the Boston area to serve a far larger market, and Dave gamely took it. He is now running a sister facility, and will be returning back home at regular intervals.