Virgil Hunter began training fighters while working with troubled youths in the probations department. Feeling confident that he could build a fighter, Hunter worked as an apprentice for several years in Oakland, California with trainers including Bobby Warren, Jimmie Simmons, Charlie Smith, and Tiger Floyd. Hunter closely associates with a fraternity of trainers including Barry Hunter (no relation), Leon Lawson, Tony Morrison, Kevin Cunningham, Nazim Richardson. He began training eventual Olympic gold medal winner Andre Ward when Ward was nine.