Just one year ago, Noel Cordero (25) was still serving in the U.S. Navy — now, he is working with the world’s most elite mixed martial arts fighters at the Ultimate Fighting Championship’s Performance Institute.
For the Navy veteran, the facility represents both a fresh chapter and proof of the possibilities that can come after service, namely a career shaping some of the toughest athletes in the world.
“This is my dream. I get to help fighters at the highest level reach their goals. Not long ago, I was putting my boots on every day in the Navy. Now I’m here.”
“This is my dream,” Cordero said. “I get to help fighters at the highest level reach their goals. Not long ago, I was putting my boots on every day in the Navy. Now I’m here.”
After five years of service and some of the hardest personal moments of his life, he made the decision to leave the Navy to pursue an education in kinesiology and strength and conditioning coaching. But it wasn’t easy getting there.
A rough start and a reset
Cordero was first introduced to combat sports by his father, a boxer. The two spent hours training together in his basement and watching boxing and UFC regularly, planting seeds for a passion that would grow into a career.
By age 11, Cordero had taken up wrestling, a sport he competed in for eight years, including two as an undergrad at Liberty University. While traditional sports never fully clicked, combat sports felt natural. When he transferred to Kent State University, he paused wrestling briefly to focus on academics, earning a bachelor’s degree in exercise science. Yet, as he still followed the UFC as a fan, his personal journey veered off the course he intended.
While studying at Kent State, he spent much of his time bartending and enjoying the nightlife, but soon, it got to a point where he began questioning his future.
“I looked in the mirror one day and realized I wasn’t taking care of myself,” Cordero recalled. “I knew I needed a change. I was going down a path that wasn’t right for me.”
Joining the military offered the reset he needed. Cordero decided to join the U.S. Navy, serving five years as a flight-deck electrician. Boot camp, he said, was a major turning point.
“It was a complete mental and physical reset,” he said. “The military taught me discipline, how to show up on time, how to communicate with people from all backgrounds. It taught me how to be a responsible adult and take control of my life.”
Loss, transition, and a new mission
Cordero’s Navy career took him across Asia. But then suddenly, a phone call during deployment changed everything: his father had been diagnosed with cancer. He flew home to spend his father’s final weeks with him.
Before, he was applying to be a Navy nurse, a job he felt would benefit him and his family for the long term. But now, he was at a place mentally where he had to make some difficult choices. He began to accept that this might be a good time to get out of the military.
“Leaving the Navy was intimidating,” Cordero said. “There’s a lot of pressure to stay in, but I knew I needed to prioritize what I was passionate about.”
He began planning his transition, leaning on military benefits to pursue graduate education. While studying to be a certified strength and conditioning specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association, he came across videos to prepare for the exam from Dr. Jacob Goodin, professor of kinesiology at Point Loma Nazarene University. This led him to research PLNU, and apply and enroll in the master of kinesiology program.
“The military gives you resources, but you have to use them,” Cordero said. “For me, that meant using my GI Bill to go after what I’m passionate about. It also meant going to therapy to process my father’s death, despite the negative stigma in the military, which has helped me and I still do it today.”
Building a career after service
At PLNU, Cordero quickly found himself thriving. He earned a graduate assistantship that allowed him to work with multiple athletic teams, including Men’s Baseball, Men’s Basketball, and he even became head coach for Women’s Golf — all while completing his coursework. He also interned with the San Diego Legion Major League Rugby team, on top of training world class jiu-jitsu athletes through Electrum Performance and his own online coaching business.
“It was overwhelming at times — school, internships, my own business — but because of all that the program offers, I was able to push myself and see what I was capable of,” he said.
He credits faculty mentorship, particularly from Dr. Brent Alvar, professor of kinesiology and dean of the department, who helped him see his potential.
“In the military, you can feel like just a number,” Cordero said. “I went from that to Point Loma, where I had mentors who believed in me, telling me I can do it, that I can chase these dreams. Dr. Alvar gave me so many words of encouragement and opportunities. That made all the difference.”
His favorite part of the program was how personalized it was. It also has more resources than most Division I schools do. “As far as quality of education and facilities, we’re almost unmatched. It’s hard to believe a small Division II Nazarene school in San Diego has one of the greatest programs in the country. To me, it is the greatest program in the country,” he said.
Serving fighters at the UFC
His connections at PLNU also helped him into the internship he now has with the UFC Performance Institute in Las Vegas, where he works full-time to support athletes. His days start early, preparing programs, coaching training partners, and he will soon be working directly with fighters — including world champions.
“Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a young sport, so we don’t have decades of data like football or basketball,” he explained. “That gives us the chance to be creative, to figure out the best ways to help fighters get stronger and more resilient. It’s exciting.”
For Cordero, the job combines his love of combat sports — inspired by his father and his own years of wrestling — with the discipline and communication skills he developed in the Navy.
“Each athlete is like a puzzle,” he said. “My job is to identify what they need, explain it in a way that matters to them, and help them see progress. It’s a challenge I love.”
The start of a new chapter
Cordero credits his faith, his wife Natalie, and the lessons learned from his father for guiding him through challenges.
“When my dad passed, it was the toughest time in my life,” he said. “Of course I felt like giving up. But I always held onto faith. He was a devout Christian and he had faith all the way through, so I followed his example. When I felt like things weren’t going to work out, I would think about how much faith he had. I thought to myself, ‘If I do the right things, and if I believe, everything will work out.’ Even when I didn’t fully believe it, I would tell myself that and start to believe. At some point, it turned into, ‘I have to believe this will work out.’”
His wife, a Jiu Jitsu competitor and director of a San Diego martial arts after-school program, has been his biggest supporter. Together, they hope to one day open a gym that combines strength training with mixed martial arts instruction.
“That’s part of our five-year plan — to create a space where athletes and kids can grow,” he said.
Looking back, Cordero sees how his life could have looked very different if he had made different choices, but today, he’s amazed to know that the whole time, he was capable of everything he’s accomplished.
Now, he wants to use his story to inspire others — athletes who want to see what they’re capable of, service members transitioning out of the military, and those who might not know what next step to take.
And his advice for fellow service members preparing to transition: Make a plan, use the resources available to you, and don’t let fear dictate your future.
“My advice is to start small and make just one change, anything to build momentum.”
“Leaving the military can be scary,” he said. “But if you figure out what you want, make a plan, and use the benefits you’ve earned, you will have the confidence you need to get out. That’s what happened to me. I didn’t have the confidence until I [had 100 percent of] a plan and knew where I was going. Education was the path for me. It can be for a lot of people.”
Now at the UFC, he feels he is just beginning.
“I know I can go further,” Cordero said. “I’ve already proven to myself what I’m capable of. Now I want to keep getting better and bring others with me.”
