Braulio Estima Interview

Steve Fan: Going back to your knee injury in early 2008, what went through your mind, and how did you overcome it mentally following the operation?

Braulio Estima: When the injury first happened, I was worried like anyone else would be. I had never been through this before, having surgery and the reconstruction of my knee ligaments. I was very cautious and worried all the time. I asked the doctor if I would ever be able to fight again and be as before. He told me it would all depend on my recovery, but thought I would do well.

I was really willing to fight at the Worlds, which was about four months after surgery, which was my goal. In the first month I was very down, I wasn’t feeling as good, recovery wasn’t what I was expecting. But, from the second month on, I started to push myself harder with a lot of physio, stretching and going to the physiotherapist every day. I started to think that I was going to do the Worlds, and do my best. I managed to get to the final, even in the condition I was in, I was very proud of myself.

SF: You won double gold at the first ever no-gi Pan-Ams, held in New York at the end of 2008. You prepared with Roger (Gracie), Romulo Barral and your brother Victor at your Birmingham gym, before final preparations with Renzo Gracie in New York. Can you tell me more about training with these guys and the competition itself?
BE: After the Worlds, my main goal was to make a full recovery from my operation. I got married and had the honeymoon and rested. I started training here (Birmingham) with Roger etc, and I was not getting any knee problems no more, but I just did not have the confidence yet, like the competition rhythm. That’s why I wanted to compete in the Panams to get the rhythm back. I went to New York and we trained four days of fine tuning with Renzo (Gracie) and others. The main preparation was here in the UK, training with my brother (Victor), Romulo Barral and Roger Gracie in Brimingham.

SF: You won the absolute & weight division at the Capital Challenge, Jordan, walking away with the $20,000 prize money. You beat Alliance member Gabriel Vella on the way to the absolute final, before beating Leo Leite (Alliance) in the final. Can you tell me about the final?
BE: The final was the easiest part of the job to be honest, because the open class was not an arranged bracket. Usually, they keep the main guys from meeting each other until the finals. Brackets were randomly chosen. I got my first fight against the guy who came second in the Abu Dhabi the week before Jordan.

The second fight was against Charles Cachoeira, who was 130kg and the favourite for the absolute. And after him, I got Vella, who beat him by advantage point previously. So these three fights were the hardest for me.

The finals were held the following day, which gave me time to recover, it was against Leo Leite, who I have fought before. The first three I hadn’t fought before, so I wasn’t completely sure what to expect from them. So, Leo Leite knew what to expect from me and my strong points. I won on points, finishing with an arm bar right on the whistle.

SF: In your -88k bracket weight division, you and Otavio de Souza (UK favourite and Gracie Barra team mate), met in the final. You won by arm bar submission. Was it a ‘friendly’ fight due to your seniority in the camp?
BE: Otavio and I made a deal before the fight that no matter what happened that I would be the champion. So, we decided that the first three minutes we would go full on, after which we would slow down. But then, I don’t know if it was out of respect, but I passed his guard. I guess it wasn’t a full fight as normal.

SF: Some people, thought you ‘were done and written off’ after your injury. You proved them wrong. What was your determination in succeeding? Tell me what is the ‘secret of your success’?
BE: Well, my main mindset was to beat myself. I focused and wanted to prove to myself that I could go back to where I was before. That was my thinking during my training and my recovery. I would learn a few techniques, and study fights. The secret of my success is focus, having my feet on the ground and never giving up. Facing any challenge in life, face to face and not to pass them over. I think it’s a part of my personality, because I like to be challenged. My challenge this time was to recover and go back to how I use to be, no matter how long it took. I would not give up.

SF: What mental preparations do you have in the lead up to a competition and prior to stepping on the mat?
BE: The way I prepare is in how I train. If I train right and everything is good, I feel confident, I just wait for the competition to arrive. When it comes to the competition, I just focus. I’m not very stressed before a fight. I get more excited, especially the day before. I really look forward to competing and showing my Jiu Jitsu. My mental preparation is to think positively, thinking only about the victory. It doesn’t matter what happens, I will come back with a gold medal.

Before stepping onto the mat, I like to know who I am against. I know from experience, by looking at the body types, what kind of fighter they are, ie if they play a fast game, if they play on the top or bottom. Usually, you know who you are fighting before hand. It depends who you are fighting, against someone who is not as good, you can afford to relax, compared to a top guy where you need to be more cautious. It’s all about strategy, I think about my strategy.

SF: Do you get any fear before competing, if so, how do you overcome it?
BE: I wouldn’t say fear. I would say more adrenalin, you know. You get nerves, which is natural. This feeling turns on all the natural senses, you get sharper and are more aware. If you get there too relaxed, it’s not good. You need to have the adrenalin rush.

SF: To add to your hectic schedule, you got married in Poland to the lovely Beata back in July of 2008. It was a great and emotional occasion, attended by likes of Roger Gracie, Remco Pardoel, your family and a few close students from the UK. Please tell me about it.
BE: It was one of the best days of my life, apart from when I was single (laughs) [ed, at this point Beata corrects him]. Getting married was the best part of my life. It was great to see all my family, friends. My mom and dad were there, my brother Victor and Beata’s family. I had such a great time. I would like to do it again on my fifth anniversary and renew our vows. It was good to see all our friends there enjoying themselves.

SF: You are soon to become a proud father for the first time in April. How are preparations going? Is it without saying that he will be a BJJ champion?
BE: We are all set for the baby’s arrival. The nursery is already finished. We can’t wait for the day. It’s a dream, it’s such a special feeling. I can’t wait to hold him in my arms.

SF: So, the competitions won’t get in the way?
BE: No, I have the professional Abu Dhabi on 1st May, the baby is due the end of April. If he arrives before my flight date, then I will stay behind. It’s the most important day of my life. I have spoken to him already and given him my proposal not to arrive too early (laughs).

I will never force him to do things he doesn’t want to do. If he does decide to do BJJ, I am sure he will be a champion.

SF: You’ve extended your gym area and dedicated it to Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. It was a proud moment on the open day, when it all came together. What are your plans for the academy?
BE: We started to refurbish the academy in September 2007 with my father in law. The mat space is now 200 sq metres and a total area of 500 sq metres. It has changed completely now, with new changing rooms, reception area, sitting area etc. It makes people feel more at home. It’s a full time academy; we have at least three classes a day, every day. It’s growing as a club all the time.

The plans are to improve and put on more classes, which are getting busier eg for beginners, women, fitness class, yoga etc

SF: What is the focus of your teaching at your academy at the moment and how things are taught?
BE: With my experience I’ve gained from teaching, I visit so often different countries, who have different needs, especially people who do not have easy access to a black belt, who really want to learn. They try and take as much from me as they can, asking as much as possible in the short time they have with me. I get this very often with what they ask and what they need.

Imagine, if you are thirsty, you go the lake, you drink as much water as possible, so they take the most important things from me. So, I started to pick up on topics. This has helped me develop a way of teaching to help you understand easier. The hardest part to get across in a class are reactions. Black belts have reactions which are completely automatic. It’s not easy to teach reactions when you don’t think about the reactions. That’s why you don’t see many black belts teaching a step 1, step 2, step 3 approach. I break down the techniques so much that I can show all the reactions, and make it easier for my students to understand the technique, rather than just simply following the steps. I go over what is learned over the whole week for the warm up. We keep on drilling and doing specific training directed for everyone. I’ll show them the strategy and how to plan their way to a submission. That is the main thing I have changed, rather than showing technique.

SF: You remain as humble as the day we met six years ago. How do you keep so level headed being a true champion? Is being humble something which is taught through Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, do you think?
BE: Really! (laughs) I do BJJ because I love it. I like to teach and train. It’s about feeling good. I don’t do it to become like an idol. I like to compete because of the challenge and do well, because it’s a result of my training. I have fun training with my friends. I believe all the friends I have in this country are through Jiu Jitsu, so I treat them like friends and not students. At the end of the day we are family. What’s the point of changing my attitude, I will distant my students. It’s one of the main things on my mind.

In Brazil, there are so many guys who have won as blue belts, they pass you by with their noses up. I grew up with this around me, and thought why the need for this attitude. I hate arrogance. And humbleness is a character of a true champion in my mind. I wanted to prove to people that you can actually get there without the arrogance. There is always someone better.

I try to pass on being humble to my students. I think it’s passed down from the instructor. I believe if the instructor is arrogant, then he will tell his student to go the same way. I am a humble person naturally, and respect every opponent that I fight, also the students and every one I deal with. I had a few guys in the club who were very arrogant, but they left because of their ego. I don’t want people with attitude, if you want to be there, I have to have the right environment as I am there, my wife and my kid are going to be there. That is what I want to preserve. I show them that they can gain respect by not being arrogant.

SF: What were the highs and lows over the last year or so?
BE: Well, 2008 was a very busy year, it went so quick with so many things going on. I started with the surgery in January, which was the low with the recovery. Fighting at the Worlds and reaching the final not being at 100% was mid way for me, because I am very self-critical. The wedding was a high, the honeymoon was another high. I had not had a break for such a long time, then I came back to train for the Europeans which was another high. Winning the Panam no gi’s absolute was a high. Then I got a back injury during this, when I hit a low. I even cancelled my ticket twice to the Jordan competition. Three weeks before the competition, I decided to go. I wasn’t 100%, but I went there. Winning the absolute was a big high. Afterwards, I spent twenty days in Recife, with my family. I have not been back to Brazil for eighteen months.

I trained whilst on holiday in Brazil, when my instructor, Ze Radiola said I was ready to fight in the Europeans, which was also a high for me. So, I have been accelerating up. The sky is the limit!

SF: What are your future plans for Braulio, the fighter, the academy and the family man?
BE: My next goal, I was planning on the Panams at the end of March, but I decided against it because of an injury, to fully recover and focus on my wife’s pregnancy. My baby is due in April. Then I will fight at the Professional Abu Dhabi in May and then June is the Worlds to get back my title. After that, I will focus on the Abu Dhabi (no gi) in USA in September. I will use this training for my mma debut in October. I am waiting for the right contract and have been training in stand up and striking. When the time comes, I will be ready for sure.

SF: Can you give some final words on what effect Helio Gracie has had on the world of BJJ?
BE: Well, Helio Gracie was an example of life. He did everything he believed in. He has left a huge legacy, one of the main guys who expanded BJJ to the world with Carlos Gracie, who died a long time ago. He gave us a lesson in life and how to be completely healthy and live longer with a very sharp mind until he was 95. He proved that you don’t need to be strong to beat a bigger opponent, proving that technique was more important than strength. His sons Royce and Rickson are big examples of BJJ up to now.

We are all going to miss him. Everyone has a duty, and I think he completed his.

I would like to say thank you to everyone for their support through the good times and the bad. My wife, my brother, my family, in laws, students. I am lucky to have so many good people around me who always push me up, who have got me to where I am. I’d like to say thank you to my sponsors Keiko Raca and Manto.