Welcome back to another After Dark episode of the Iron Sights Podcast. My guest today is my good friend John Valentine, who officially holds the record for the most appearances on the After Dark series. John’s been part of the show since the early days — from his philosophy on combatives and coaching to his role in shaping the Combatives Summit into one of the most respected gatherings in the training community.
In this conversation, we debrief the 2025 Combatives Summit, recorded just a day after John returned from the event. We talk about what went down on the mats, the lessons learned, and how collaboration—not competition—drives progress in the combatives world. John also shares updates on his journey as a BJJ black belt, match director, and instructor, diving deep into his process, growth, and approach to teaching. If you care about performance, mindset, and purpose in training, you’ll take a lot from this one.
Timestamps:
00:00 Intro
04:51 Summit Recap
06:13 Training Mindset
10:49 Facing Fear
18:17 Realistic Scenarios
40:55 Instructor Highlights
50:30 Personal Updates
55:29 Continuous Learning
01:07:50 Future Plans
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