LOS ANGELES – Diego Sanchez arguably has been the fighter most associated with Jackson-Wink MMA over the course of its history. But now he’s left the gym.

Sanchez (29-11 MMA, 18-11 UFC), who meets Michael Chiesa (15-4 MMA, 8-4 UFC) next week at UFC 239, on Monday revealed he has parted ways with his longtime training home. The UFC veteran cited a lack of development in his skill set and an inattentiveness from the coaching staff to his needs.

According to Sanchez, he will enter his upcoming fight with just one cornerman and said he’s finishing his UFC 239 fight preparation with Josh Fabia in his corner.

“I made a crucial decision,” Sanchez told MMA Junkie at a UFC 239 media day in Los Angeles. “This is a Diego Sanchez moment. I made a crucial decision. It’s three weeks before the fight. No more JW – Jackson-Wink, one of the best teams in the world. No. I’m going in with one trainer. I’m going in with one trainer. People are like, ‘Wow, what the hell, Diego? What are you thinking?’ Well, I’m not only thinking, I’m feeling. That’s a big part of who Diego Sanchez is: I don’t think too much. I don’t think it’s good to think too much. I think you’ve got to feel. You’ve got to feel this – your gut. You’ve got to feel this part right here that’s inside of you.

“All I know is I wasn’t learning. I wasn’t growing as a mixed martial artist, that they were teaching me with the knowledge and information as trainers that they were doing. They were just basically going through the motions with Diego Sanchez.”

UFC 239 takes place July 6 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Sanchez vs. Chiesa opens the pay-per-view main card in a welterweight matchup that follows prelims on ESPN and ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass.

Sanchez’s departure from the gym in Albuquerque, N.M., may come as a surprise, but fits within a greater trend associated with the gym in recent years. There’s been an exodus of talent from Jackson-Wink MMA of late, including the likes of Donald Cerrone and Cub Swanson.

At 37, Sanchez still has big goals in the sport. “The Ultimate Fighter 1” winner has been part of the UFC roster since 2005, but with consecutive wins on his record, he’s thinks now is the time to make a push toward the top.

Because of that, Sanchez thought he should be a priority in his training environment. In a super gym such as Jackson-Wink MMA, though, he said he didn’t feel prioritized by head trainers Greg Jackson and Mike Winkeljohn.

“For the past three years, Diego Sanchez (has) really being doing the Bruce Lee type of style training: going in early, getting my thousands of reps in and training myself,” Sanchez said. “Obviously everyone knows my grappling credentials – getting some grappling classes in and grappling rolls in. Go get my rounds in with the young bucks and do my thing in the gym. But come fight time, you’d get a couple mitt sessions with Winkeljohn, never really learning anything, just kind of tuning up what I already had. With Greg Jackson, it was maybe one or two privates a camp, but never really any true love – the type of love that a trainer should have for his fighter.”

Sanchez has split from Jackson-Wink MMA once before. After starting his career with 17 consecutive wins, “The Nightmare” relocated to California following his first defeat in 2007. He found his way back to the team several years later and has since been one of the flag bearers of the gym.

As recently as this year, Sanchez engaged in a spat with Cerrone after “Cowboy” left the team and voiced many grievances on the way out. Some of them mirror Sanchez’s frustrations, but he said he’s not trying to paint a negative picture about Jackson-Wink MMA.

Sanchez said he was thankful for everything he received from the gym, but felt he needed to move on.

“Nothing but respect for Winkeljohn and Greg,” Sanchez said. “I love those guys. I am grateful and I express a huge amount of gratitude right now to both Mike Winkeljohn, to Greg Jackson, to Jackson’s MMA. Everything. All the way up. All the training parters that got in that room and helped me become the man that I am right now, I appreciate.

“For this time in my career, there was no focus on Diego. There was no real love on Diego Sanchez. Maybe because we’ve got two belt fights, Jon (Jones) and Holly (Holm at UFC 239), but you know what? I don’t give a (expletive). I don’t give a (expletive). I’m Diego Sanchez. I am special. I’m a Hall of Famer.”

For more on UFC 239, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.