We are a small team of talented professionals with a wide range of skills and experience. We love what we do, and we do it with passion. We look forward to working with you.
Trevor Birmingham
Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Coach
Trevor is the co-founder and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu head coach of Neon Martial Arts and Fitness Centre Southampton. He is a highly decorated Sport Jiu Jitsu, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Judo black belt. Trevor is one of few people in United Kingdom to hold a black belt in three different martial arts.
From a very young age, Trevor travelled and competed all over the world. He holds several prestigious titles including 3 x Naga World Championships, 4 x IBJJF European Champion GI and NO-GI plus a dozen more national, international and world titles. Before his 21st birthday, Trevor was already part of the Judo British team representing the country with the national squad.
Over the years Trevor had the opportunity to train and compete against the best martial artists in the world. So far, he competed in over 100 international tournaments, and he won the majority. Trevor even tested his grappling skills in MMA for several years and is now a retired professional fighter. While he was a brown belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Trevor was ranked number one in the world for his age and weight category. With a passion for teaching, Trevor has passed on his knowledge and helped many of his students win multiple national, international and European titles.
Ahileas Bolovan
Wrestling Coach
Visit: Achilles’ Wrestling World
Ahileas is the co-founder and Wrestling head coach of Neon Martial Arts and Fitness Centre Southampton. He started training freestyle wrestling at a very young age in the post-communist Romania.
He trained, competed and dedicated the last 20 years of his life to various forms of martial arts, but his interest remained in wrestling and he became a student of the sport.
Ahileas comes from a mixed heritage of Romanian and Greek descendants. He holds a bachelor’s degree in economics, a nursing diploma and speaks three languages.
In 2011 Ahileas and his wife Anca came to England for a holiday. They felt in love with the place and decided to make it their home.
Since 2013 Ahileas has been training and teaching alongside Trevor Birmingham. Together they travelled the world, attending multiple competitions. Trevor helped him win his first European title in 2019 -the most important title of his competitive carrier-
Because of his passion for wrestling and the lack of dedicated wrestling programs in the south of England, Ahileas and Trevor decided to create Neon Martial Arts and Fitness Centre, where they hope to create the next generation of National, European and World Champions.
‘’Life is like a wrestling match. Nothing is handed to you but once you’ve wrestled, everything else in life is easy’’
Derek Hopkins
Judo Coach
Derek is one of the most experienced and knowledgeable Judo instructors in United Kingdom.
He dedicated the last 50 years of his life to martial arts and he is one of the very few people in Great Britain to hold a 6th Dan in Judo.
Derek is a 4 times World medallist, 3 times British Masters Champion, European silver medallist and won multiple other national and international medals.
Over the years, Derek has been very involved with the British Judo Association as a level 3 coach and a senior examiner. Under his close guidance, some of his students became part of the elite national squad and won multiple competitions and medals.
Ant Jones
Submission Grappling Coach
Ant Jones coaches the submission grappling classes. Ant started training in 2014 at Rogers Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Gosport under Martin and Aaron Rogers (affiliated under Gracie Barra Derby), where he received his blue belt from Professors Patrick and Stephen Martin in April 2017. Soon after, Ant relocated to Southampton and started training under head coach and black belt Trevor Birmingham.
A regular on the competition scene since starting training, Ant has travelled, fought, and medalled in all types of competition from local to international, with notable accomplishments at well-known events. He is also a veteran on the submission-only scene having competed twice on the ‘Battle Grapple’ show with a record of 1-1, amongst other competitions such as ADCC UK
Ant’s experience with the physical repercussions of frequent training on and off the mats led him to explore avenues of exercise practice which aided recovery, prevented injury, and promoted longevity, specifically yoga. In 2019 he became part of the first group of practitioners in the world to earn instructor certification in the ‘Yoga for BJJ’ programme from YFBJJ founder and BJJ black belt, Sebastian Brosche. Ant is one of just a small handful of practitioners recognised as being qualified to teach YFBJJ within the UK.
Pete Kingsland
K1/Kickboxing/MMA Coach
Pete is Neon Martial Arts K1/Kickboxing coach. He started training American style kickboxing and Judo at a very young age, in Germany. He moved to rural England with his family where he lived most of his teenage years. When he turned twenty, he joined a martial arts gym in Poole. There is where he started teaching kickboxing and self-defence, while training JKD and competing into amateur MMA. He holds a record of six fights zero losses (6 -0) Following several injuries, he decided not to pursue his MMA career and focus on teaching and training different martial arts.
With years of dedicated training and a strong competitive spirit, Pete has achieved remarkable milestones in his martial arts journey. Under the guidance of head coach Trevor Birmingham, he earned his brown belt, a testament to his skill and commitment. In 2023, Pete’s hard work paid off as he became a European Masters Gold medalist, showcasing his exceptional talent and determination.