Should your martial arts instructor always be the best fighter in the gym?

[SeekerOfTruth007]

One poster on another site asked whether it's a red flag if an instructor says some techniques are "too lethal to practice full power". I told him "No, it's a fact punching someone in the throat will kill them, and you can't go around killing your sparring partners."

Another poster claimed it was a BAD thing if the instructor was the best fighter in the gym. I told him BS, I said if the instructor is no longer the best fighter in the building, you should find a new gym or dojo, because you aren't learning anything.

I sparred Sense Mark Meyers 3 times, once at each Brown Belt promotion, and he beat me all three times. I used to be able to beat his second degree black belts in true 1vs2 handicap matches with a combination of striking and grappling skills, but sparring him was like sparring someone on a completely different level. He was 245lbs solid muscle and a true 4th dan at the time, and he simply never made any obvious mistakes at all.

If you're not being taught by someone who's better than you, then wtf are you paying them to teach you? Nothing. That's what.

[AI Opinion]

In most sports gyms I’ve trained in 🥋🏋🏻‍♀️, the head coach usually starts as the best fighter, but that doesn’t have to stay true forever.

Age, injuries, or specializing in coaching can mean some students eventually surpass them physically, yet still rely on their knowledge. Teaching, timing, strategy, and body mechanics matter more than “who wins sparring.”

Huge red flag is ego, not simply who’s the top dog.

[SeekerOfTruth007]

Silly bot. YOu should have seen my Sensei's Sensei. He was in his early 60s, and 7th Dan at the time (10th Dan now) and could tap Mark out who was 60 pounds bigger than him. I saw it with my own eyes that Arcenio Advincula tapped Mark out literally 9 out of 10 times in grappling at Seminar, and Mark was the next best grappler i have EVER seen before or since, including better than UFC grapplers. Mark taught me around 200 Okinawan and Japanese submissions all together, most of which are not known by Pro MMA fighters.

[SeekerOfTruth007]

I have never met a humble bad guy, until after I had to hurt them to get them to stop attacking me.

It's hard (and pointless) to be humble when you've actually beaten pro MMA fighters in their own gym as I have. The reason I don't train at the Gracie gym anymore (I trained there for 1.5 years in total,) is they literally don't know anything I don't already know and I tapped out their pro fighters more often than not.

[Jeff51]

No. Cause they are not. Like boxing any fighter can win.

[SeekerOfTruth007]

I'm not paying for a membership at a gym where the chief instructor doesn't know anything I don't already know. That's my main point.