It’s not often that a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion travels to Connecticut which is what makes Braulio Estima’s third trip to Connecticut so special. Braulio is not just a BJJ world champion, he has won every major tournament in both gi and no-gi that there is to win. As a 3rd degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-jitsu Braulio has won ADCC at both weight and absolute, he has won the Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world championships 3 times, the Abu Dhabi world championships, the Pan American championship, the no-gi Pan American Championships twice and the European BJJ Championship 5 times. Braulio’s resume of success shows that his technique, and strategy are not just enough to win, but win the toughest tournaments in the world for over a decade.
The seminar was packed with Jiu-jitsu practitioners ranging from White Belts to Black Belts from the Connecticut and Rhode Island area and several of these bjj students were attending their second or third seminar with Braulio. Attracting such a wide range of skill levels and having so many students travel for a second or third seminar with the BJJ world champion shows that Braulio’s skill goes beyond that of just a competitor, it shows that Braulio is also a world class instructor.
During the seminar Braulio’s main focus was simple concepts and techniques you can use to prevent the bottom player from escaping the side control, controlling the top position and then improving our position to move from side control to the mount, all while positioning ourselves to make the Kimora available during this transition. The level of detail Braulio was able to articulate about a fairly small sequence of moves was simply amazing. The was Braulio teaches allows new students to see techniques that they can begin using immediately while he also takes to time to discuss higher level concepts for the more advanced BJJ practitioners in the room. All while answering day one questions from white Belts and advanced strategic questions from black belts.
The most amazing part of the seminar was when Braulio showed how he does an Americana, and how he finishes the Rear Naked Choke. The details he showed had every black belt in the room amazed at how a few simple changes could make two day one BJJ techniques so much more effective. After the seminar people were hanging out drilling the moves they had learned and talking with Braulio about how great the experience was. One thing is certain, Crossroads BJJ can’t wait to host the 4th annual Braulio Estima Seminar.