Phil Daru
Strength and conditioning for MMA
Daru Strong / American Top Team (formerly)
Athletes coached
- Various ATT contracted fighters
- Dustin Poirier (formerly)
- Joanna Jędrzejczyk (formerly)
On this page (5)
The S&C specialist
Phil Daru is the most-recognizable strength-and-conditioning coach in modern MMA. His career began at American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida in the early 2010s, where he was the lead S&C coach for the gym's championship-level roster.
In 2018-2019, Daru launched Daru Strong as an independent S&C program co-located with ATT but operating with separate branding and a broader athlete roster.
The athletes
- Multiple ATT contracted fighters — including Dustin Poirier, Amanda Nunes, Tyron Woodley during the 2014-2020 stretch
- Joanna Jędrzejczyk (formerly) — UFC women's strawweight champion
- Various championship-level UFC and Bellator athletes
The Daru roster has been less stable than head-coach rosters because S&C work is supplementary — athletes typically work with their head coach plus a specialized S&C coach.
The coaching philosophy
Daru's S&C programming emphasizes:
- Power development: maximal strength training periodized to peak at the fight date.
- Conditioning for championship rounds: cardiac-output development that supports 25-minute pace.
- Mobility and injury prevention: the unsexy work that extends athletic careers.
- Sport-specific testing: regular testing of S&C variables to verify training adaptations.
The Daru system is documented through his books, podcasts, and YouTube content — making him one of the most publicly-articulated S&C coaches in combat sports.
The Daru Strong evolution
The post-2019 Daru Strong program operates as both:
- A dedicated S&C facility in South Florida for MMA athletes preparing major bouts.
- An online programming service for athletes who can't physically travel to South Florida.
- A coaching education platform for other S&C professionals.
The dual identity has expanded Daru's reach beyond the ATT-only contracted-fighter pool.
The legacy
Phil Daru is the most-credentialed S&C specialist in modern MMA. His combined athlete-success record — multiple UFC champions and contenders with documented S&C improvements under his coaching — has elevated S&C as a recognized specialty in MMA coaching.
The Daru Strong template (separate S&C coaching alongside MMA head-coaching) has influenced the modern championship-camp structure, where dedicated S&C, nutrition, and recovery specialists are now standard.