Master Eddie Bravo AKA “The Twister” - His Claim to Fame!

Some call him a shrewd businessman, capitalizing his win against a legend; others glorify his no-gi submission philosophy, and his trademark - “The Twister”.

Quite the controversial figure, Eddie Bravo has enjoyed much limelight without extensively competing in black belt competitions. He began ruling the world of MMA with a single win. With his 10th Planet style of no-gi jiu-jitsu, Bravo set out to revolutionize the old-school Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Born on May 15th, 1970, Eddie Bravo grew up in Santa Ana, California. His original name is Edgar A. Cano. Later, he legally adopted his stepfather’s surname, Bravo.

He first discovered his interest in combat sports during high school. He was a wrestler, who later gravitated towards karate in his teenage years. A man of many talents, Bravo’s interests were not reserved for fighting only.

Inside young Bravo, there thrived a passionate musician, eager to cast a spell on the world through his music. Bravo enjoyed playing drums and guitar; he moved to Hollywood in hopes of making music his career. Bravo aspired to succeed in the music industry and even formed a band named Blackened Kill Symphony.

But life had something else in store for him. He found his forte in the combat sport when, in the 1960s, he became influenced by Bruce Lee's fighting style. To explore the sport more, Bravo became an affiliate of Phillip Skornia.

The first UFC in 1993 opened a different route. Bravo observed that Royce Gracie defeated opponents in multiple martial arts , karate being one of them. He lost faith in Master Skornia’s teachings and became more interested in grappling.

After the UFC event concluded, he joined the Jeet Kune Do school and added Jiu-Jitsu training to his schedule at the Machado Bros. Academy.

He started training in BJJ in May 1994 and spent more than two years polishing his JKD and BJJ skills only to shift his focus to grappling techniques later on in life.

The 2002 ADCC North American Trials held in San Diego, California marked the beginning of his professional black belt career.

Short as it was, Eddie Bravo, a brown belt, became a name to remember.

He stood victorious in the 2002 ADCC North American Trials in the Lightweight division and was awarded the title - “Most Technical Fighter of the Night.”

Confident and ambitious after the win, he flew to Sao Paulo in 2003 to participate in the ADCC No-Gi World Championship, an auspicious no-gi event, to showcase his skills against the legends of the gi world.

Unfortunately, the record of Bravo’s extensive participation in the lower belt tournaments is almost non-existent. This majorly contributed to the “nobody-status” before his career finally took off.

 Whatever audience he had managed to amass was through his commentaries for the broadcast of a popular MMA organization. In his commentaries, Bravo openly and sometimes ruthlessly expressed his views against the traditional Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu play tactics applied by most competitors.

However, the real shock came when he defeated Royler Gracie - the most popular and most feared black belt in the ADCC 2003 Championship.

In the quarter-finals, against all odds, Bravo controlled Gracie (4-time world champion) using his invented rubber guard technique and submitted him with a triangle choke while Gracie unsuccessfully attempted a calculated move, the knee sliding guard pass.

After this match, Bravo went from an anonymous BJJ practitioner to a BJJ legend in mere minutes. Before this match, Gracie had never been beaten in any competition. Bravo changed the course of history as he successfully played his game and claimed fame.

However, the real shock came when he defeated Royler Gracie - the most popular and most feared black belt in the ADCC 2003 Championship.

In the quarter-finals, against all odds, Bravo controlled Royler Gracie (4-time world champion) using his invented rubber guard technique and submitted him with a triangle choke while Gracie unsuccessfully attempted a calculated move, the knee sliding guard pass.

After this match, Bravo went from an anonymous BJJ practitioner to a BJJ legend in mere minutes. Before, this match Gracie had never been beaten in any competition. Bravo changed the course of history as he successfully played his game to claim fame.

Though Bravo ended up losing to the would-be champion Leo Viera, his mark was already left on the world. 

Unlike most tournaments, this promotion tournament did not have points. If none of the combatants submitted before 20 minutes, the match would be declared a draw.

Both of the retired players engaged in a 20-minute long, submission-only grappling match. Bravo proved to the world yet again that his match with Royler Gracie was not just “luck” and that his skills have improved considerably over the decade.

Though Eddie Bravo’s competitive work is small, his impact is anything but. After winning the 2002 North American ADCC trials, he got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to compete in the most-coveted no-gi BJJ tournament i.e., the ADCC Championship 2003.

It all began in Sao Paulo Brazil. May 17, 2003, was a fateful day for Eddie Bravo. At the Ibirapuera Gymnasium, the inexperienced American brown belt, Eddie Bravo, and the illustrious black belt, Gustavo Dantas, competed in the opening round of the 66kg bracket of the prestigious ADCC championship.

With exceptional timing and commendable technique, Bravo overpowered Dantas submitting him in a rear-naked choke. The match left the spectators astounded.

Eddie Bravo has just proved that he was not a regular brown-belt. His skill-set was far above and beyond his rank.

After the 2003 ADCC tournament, Bravo came back to the United States not with a trophy, but with a name for himself and a legendary vision for the future of BJJ.

Jean Jacques Machado chose this time to award a black belt to him, allowing Bravo to deliver his vision by establishing a one-of-its-kind BJJ school in Los Angeles - the 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu.

The 10th Planet Jiu-jitsu saw an overwhelming influx of novice combatants who were impressed by Bravo’s trapping moves against Royler Gracie and wanted to master it.

Bravo branded his school as an unorthodox no-gi jiu-jitsu learning platform. He officially announced his brand vision in his book, “Jiu-Jitsu Unleashed,” in these words:

“Their system is flawed because they stopped evolving it. They insist that in order to get good at no-gi grappling, you must be a master of grappling with the gi, but this isn’t true, my students are living proof.” 

Bravo heavily criticizes the reliance on uniforms by jiu-jitsu masters. He believed it is disadvantageous and impractical in mixed martial arts. He arrived at this conclusion during his time working with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). He noticed that the competitors were losing more, mainly because they were training gi-style and competing for no-gi MMA.

Born with a creative genius, Bravo was never one to adhere to traditional protocols. He started evolving conventional trapping methods into more creative positions. Even as a blue belt, he was not short on ideas and didn’t shy away from experimenting.

His old wrestling teachings surfaced during his blue-belt years when he invented the signature technique “The Twister” - a neck crank submission position - to trap his opponents.

The Twister move proved to be the cornerstone of his 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu teaching methodology.

In 1999, Bravo improvised the open guard and developed the “rubber guard” technique. Bravo was still a purple belt when he worked on the rubber guard. He believed that this position would provide an edge to fighters over their opponents in a no-gi situation. The fact that the “rubber guard” is a celebrated move among novice and experienced combatants alike proves its usefulness in mixed martial arts.

The most renowned grapplers George Sotiropoulos and Vinny Magalhaes cemented Bravo’s thoughts by using the rubber guard to achieve remarkable success in matches.

Eddie Bravo helped refine the “Truck” position and incorporated it as a cornerstone of his system. The desertion of gi added to the popularity of no-gi jiu-jitsu. Bravo believed that the traditional BJJ truck position fails to meet the demands of today’s modern jiu-jitsu and no-gi systems. For Bravo, the truck is a highly-effective position that offers a wide range of submission options.

A man of many words and an authentic thought process, Bravo has published several books. His popular reads are,

• Jiu-Jitsu Unleashed (2005)
• Mastering the Twister (2007)
• Mastering the Rubber Guard (2006)
• Advanced Rubber Guard (2014)

He has also released easy to follow instructional DVDs for all those who wish to master his unique techniques. His DVD releases are:

• The Twister
• Mastering the Rubber Guard
• Mastering the Twister

Whether people accept or deny his legendary achievements, he is a famous name in his own right! Those who know the spirit of no-gi jiu-jitsu appreciate his efforts and devotion to the game.

Bravo has opened plenty of opportunities for jiu-jitsu practitioners by establishing a no-gi submission-only grappling tournament known as the Eddie Bravo Invitational (EBI).

What started in 2014 as a solo venture became a sensation in 2016 when UFC announced its partnership with EBI. The bars kept on getting set higher and higher for EBI till 2018. After that Bravo decided to make Combat Jiu-Jitsu World Championship (CJJ) a reality.

After a four-year-long break, Bravo announced the return of EBI in 2022, much to the relief of jiu-jitsu fans.

Creativity, innovation, and initiative, Eddie Bravo excels in all of these. Back in 2021, the jiu-jitsu genius came up with Medusa Female - Only Jiu-Jitsu tournament. The new project entailed combining the rule sets of EBI and CJJ into an exclusive female-only competition.

Besting Royler Gracie is not the only controversial thing that Bravo has ever done. His blatant advocacy for use of marijuana has made him quite the target of criticism, especially after he declared in his book that marijuana enhanced his creativity.

His opinions know no bounds as he has vocalized in favor of Flat Earth and World Trade Center Tower 7 controlled demolition conspiracy theories.

• ADCC North American Trials
• ADCC World Championship

• One-time Champion ADCC North American Trials.

1. He competed in the most historic grappling match against Royler Gracie in 2003.
2. He was the first combatant to make Royler Gracie submit.
3. His no-gi jiu-jitsu methods are getting global recognition.
4. He has established a modern no-gi grappling curriculum that does not rely on gi grips for wins. His curriculum promotes submission methodology rather than point-scoring.
5. Even though the 2014 Metamoris rematch was a draw, it is widely accepted that Eddie Bravo had dominated Royler Gracie.
6. He is a successful coach who has trained black belts and grappling champions like Tony Ferguson.
7. He is a promoter of the Eddie Bravo Invitational; his events helped combatants showcase their unique talents.

Eddie Bravo vs Mark Ashton ADCC Trials

Eddie Bravo vs Leo Vieira

Photo credit: vice & listal