Jon Frank – Founder, Tactical Control League
Jon Frank is the Founder of the Tactical Control League and recognized authority in arrest and control tactics, use-of-force training, and combat sports regulation. His unique background combines decades of real-world law enforcement experience with a lifetime dedicated to martial arts, combative training, and the development of safe, effective competitive combat sports.
A retired Inspector with the United States Marshals Service, Jon served as a Special Response Team (SRT) leader and
spent 11 years assigned to the Southwest Regional Fugitive Task Force, where he participated in numerous high-risk fugitive apprehensions and active-resistance use-of-force encounters. Since 1994, he has been at the forefront of developing practical arrest and control concepts and techniques, training law enforcement officers throughout the United States, Central America, and the Caribbean. Following his retirement in 2016, he continued his commitment to officer safety by providing arrest, control, and combatives seminars to personnel from agencies ranging from small local departments to major metropolitan law enforcement organizations.
Jon's martial arts journey began in 1977 and spans nearly five decades of training and competition in Karate, Taekwondo, Boxing, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Shooto (pre-UFC mixed martial arts), and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. This extensive competitive and instructional experience has provided the foundation for his work in both tactical control systems and combat sports governance.
In 2001, Jon began developing rules and regulations for a safer form of mixed martial arts suitable for youth participants and military personnel. He later founded the United States Fight League, introducing grappling and pankration competitions at Camp Pendleton in 2004 and serving as the contracted combat sports provider for Marine Corps Community Services from 2006 through 2023. Since 2007, he has also served as the grappling and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu sports coordinator for the United States Police & Fire Championships.
As a combat sports regulator, Jon shaped the landscape of youth mixed martial arts in the United States. In 2014, he successfully introduced the nation's first state athletic commission-approved Youth MMA rules and regulations and was appointed the delegated regulator for the sport under the California State Athletic Commission. He also pioneered athlete reporting and data-collection systems that contributed to peer-reviewed research examining the safety and character-development benefits of youth combat sports.
Through the Tactical Control League, Jon brings together decades of operational law enforcement experience, hands-on arrest and control expertise, and nationally recognized leadership in combat sports regulation to advance professional standards in tactical performance, officer readiness, and controlled competitive engagement.