Aug 12, 2026 · 3h 23m
A Ramadi veteran preserves the bonds forged under fire
553: Becoming Brothers Through Battle, Death, and Honor in Ramadi. With Miguel "Pitbull" Santana.
Miguel Santana’s account connects battlefield leadership, the deaths of fellow service members, and the long work of preserving their stories.
- 1Santana traces his path from a Dominican-American family to infantry leadership and a demanding Ranger School experience at 35.
- 2The Ramadi campaign depended on fortified outposts, relentless patrols, and close cooperation between conventional forces, Iraqi units, and SEALs.
- 3Unheard Voices preserves the fallen, their families, and the leaders whose decisions shaped the unit’s combat legacy.
Don't miss
Santana and Jocko revisit the deaths at Ramadi and explain how photographs, reports, and reunions preserve the people behind the casualty accounts.
The brief
Miguel “Pitbull” Santana recounts a path from a Dominican-American upbringing and Reserve service to infantry leadership, Ranger School at 35, and deployment to Iraq.
At Tal Afar, Santana’s unit learned to treat Bradleys as extensions of the force before orders sent it into Ramadi, where combat outposts brought coalition troops into the city.
Falcon became a daily partnership among conventional forces, SEALs, Iraqi soldiers, and police, combining patrols, intelligence, raids, and constant exposure to sniper and IED attacks.
The conversation turns on loss: Mark Lee, Mikey Monsoor, and others remain present through photographs, reports, survivor guilt, reunions, and the memories of those who served beside them.
Santana’s Unheard Voices took two decades to assemble, preserving not only battlefield events but also the families, leaders, and veterans who carried Ramadi home.
Featuring
Books & mentions
Unheard Voices, The Fight for Ramadi
Santana’s memoir expands the episode’s account of the 2006 deployment, its fallen soldiers, and the bonds formed in combat.
Extreme Ownership
The leadership book discussed in the conversation offers a related framework for understanding responsibility under pressure.
Listen to the full episode and explore every guest, topic, and moment on PodLume.