Hall of Fame
Kathy "THE PUNISHER" Long 5 X World Champion
Kathy Long, Eric Nolan's very first student, is the most famous and one of the most accomplished female kick boxers ever. She fought the best in the United States and Europe and destroyed 2 Japanese champions as well. She set a new standard for what women can accomplish in the ring. Guided and Trained by Master Instructor Eric Nolan she won 5 World Championships and appeared on over 35 magazine covers. She is the only Female ever inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as a fighter and is a 4 time Hall of Fame Inductee. She represents the skills and discipline that we instill into our students.
Danny "HARD AS" Steele 8 X World Champion
Danny came to the academy as a young amateur and enjoyed a record of 29-1 winning several titles here. He went on to win 8 World Championships using the skills that he learned while training under the watchful eye of Master Instructor Eric Nolan. He fought the best from the United States, Europe and Asia.
John "Iceman" Adams 2 X World Champion
John came to Eric Nolan after suffering several losses as an amateur. Eric quickly diagnosed his problems and crafted a plan to make John not only a successful professional, but a world Champion as well. John won his first world title with a brutal body attack stopping Ray Fernandez in his home town much to the dismay of the crowd. John went on to design the kickboxing program for the LA Boxing Gyms Franchise.
Lisa "Lil' Sugar" Smith 2 X World Champion
Lisa Smith was a fast accurate precision fighter with an incredible output. She fought and defeated some of the best female fighters in America picking up two world titles along the way. She is an amazing MARTIAL ARTIST.
Bryan "The Bull" Travers PFC and GC World Champion
Bryan was a talented wrestler who came to Eric to make his game complete. Bryan displayed world class toughness right from the start and quickly absorbed Eric's special style of HITTING WITHOUT GETTING HIT. Travers went 13-1 under Eric's management and training beating world ranked fighters like UFC fighter Jon Gunderson and WEC fighter Anthony Ruiz.
Toney "THE HAMMER" Hannon 5 X National, 2 X North American, 1 X World Champion
Began training with Master Instructor Eric Nolan as a very young teen. He recorded 18 wins with 0 losses including 15 KNOCK OUTS. Further he went on to work as an instructor at the center and even met his wife while teaching for us. Today he works as a police officer in Colorado. He is a credit to the community.
"DYNAMITE" Dee Dufoe World Ranked as a Boxer and Kickboxer
Dynamite Dee is Lean, Mean & Filipine. Dee fought as a kick boxer establishing a record of 13-1. She also competed as a world ranked boxer gaining recognition as a top 5 fighter by several organizations. She currently works at our center and is perhaps our most popular instructor. Try her classes when you're ready for a challenge.
Boyd "THE BOUNTY HUNTER" Murphy National and North American Champion
Boyd was a hard hitting cruiserweight & heavyweight fighter. He won many titles with his go for the Knock Out style. One of his most well known fights was his win over world ranked boxer Manuel Quesada. Boyd had power in both hands and both feet that came from strength, speed and excellent technique. Entering the ring to the sound track to, "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly" when this cowboy entered the ring you knew there was going to be a whooping.
Jason "RECON" Williamson National & North American Champion
Jason began training with Eric when he was just a teen winning several fights against older and stronger opponents. Then his country called and he was off to serve America as a United States Marine. After returning from his hitch as a Reconnaissance Marine he returned to us and won several championships in Kickboxing and Muay Thai. Perhaps his most amazing fight was when he beat Chuck Liddell stablemate Mike Limpke in 8 seconds of the first round with one kick, breaking both of the bones in the forearm, the radius and ulna. Jason is currently a Bakersfield Police Officer and teaches their defensive tactics program as well as representing the city as the department's Use of Force expert.
"THE HUNTINGTON BEACH BAD BOY" Tito Ortiz
Tito Ortiz is world famous. But most people don't know that he began his striking education working privately with Eric Nolan for a short time while he attended CSUB. Tito once autographed a picture for Eric that pronounced our gym THE BEST IN THE STATE. Who are we to argue with a UFC World Champion.
Chuck, "THE ICEMAN" Liddell
Eric has no claim as a trainer of Chuck. Master Instructor John Hackleman gets all of the credit for Chuck and his remarkable record. However, Chuck got much of his start fighting for Eric. Eric promoted 4 of Chuck's last kickboxing matches right here in Bakersfield at the Dome which was known as Strongbow Stadium at that time. We are proud to have been involved with this amazing fighter.