With David Montgomery no longer available to lead the Detroit Lions‘ backfield, running back Jahmyr Gibbs will have more responsibilities heading into the 2026 season, as he’s the No. 1 RB in Detroit now. And to prepare to lead the Lions’ running back room, Gibbs has been training with MMA legend Rafael Cordeiro, who recently acknowledged the back’s dedication.

“He shows zero fear. Zero hesitation. And this is the most important thing. I can teach techniques. I can teach punches, kicks, jiu-jitsu … sure I can,” Cordeiro told ESPN. “But to make people keep eye contact until they get to the end of the fight, this is something. If you can’t keep eyes on the prize, I cannot teach, and most of the time when he [exchanges] with my fighters, he would look in their eyes. Deep, deep, deep in their souls, and this is the most important thing for a fighter.”

Cordeiro also compared Gibbs’ physique and fighting style to former MMA star Jon Jones, citing his athleticism, flexibility, and powerful left kick. The running back started implementing mixed martial arts training starting from March this year. The same month, the Lions traded Montgomery to the Houston Texans, allowing Gibbs to lead the running back room in Detroit.

He spent his first three seasons with the Lions while splitting reps with Montgomery. In the process, he also became one of the only three running backs to score over 5,000 scrimmage yards in the last three seasons, with the other two being Bijan Robinson and Derrick Henry. But with Montgomery no longer in Detroit, Gibbs is heading into the fourth season of his career with an added role.

“It’s not weird anymore. It was weird when we first got back,” Gibbs said during the OTAs, acknowledging that he’s getting used to working without Montgomery during the offseason. “It was weird, but now I’m pretty used to it. I talk to him every day.”

While the Lions signed Isiah Pacheco earlier this offseason, Gibbs is expected to be the No. 1 running back during the 2026 season. This is why the fourth-year running back has been training with the MMA legend during the offseason. Cordeiro has previously guided the former UFC heavyweight champion Fabricio Werdum, Wanderlei Silva, Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, and Cris Cyborg.

The 53-year-old Brazilian legend has been running his Kings MMA Gym in Huntington Beach, California, for almost a couple of decades, where Gibbs has completed more than 20 hour-long training sessions with Cordeiro. The running back first inquired about a trainer via a social media post. As that happened, one of Gibbs’ close friends referred him to Cordeiro.

“It helps with body control. Your base and all that and faster hands,” Gibbs told ESPN about his training. “I would say with blocking, I get my hands up before they hit me. I feel like my body’s gotten in better shape, like physically it looks better. And conditioning-wise, that conditioning is way different from here because you use nonstop movement in every muscle of your body.

“Out here [in football], you get more breaks and [there is] much more using your legs. But there [in MMA], it’s just constant shoulders, knees, elbows, you go to the ground and all that, so out here I barely get tired.”

Gibbs has been around martial arts since he was a kid, when his grandmother introduced him to combat sports, and he spent time practicing karate with his uncle. Now, as he enters the fourth season of his career, Jahmyr Gibbs is bringing those influences into professional football ahead of the 2026 campaign.