When I first came to CTA I didn’t know how long I was going to be here or what to expect. I really didn’t have a close relationship with Professor Caio and CTA was a very new association. The only thing I knew for sure was that I felt lost at the time. Although I loved my friends and teammates from my old association I never really felt like the team was my team.

Like all new things the first couple months at CTA were amazing. I kept waiting for things to change (as they often do), but as time went on things just continued to get better. For the first time since my first master Mauricio Behring passed away, in Professor Caio I felt like I had a teacher again. He believed in me, and pushed me on the mats and in life and made me a better person. At the end of the first year I knew CTA was my team!

I had always taught prior to coming to CTA but once here I became a regular, full time instructor. I built a no gi program that only had one regular student to one of the biggest no gi programs in the bay area. Teaching and starting a program is something that changed my perspective on Jiu Jitsu and life. The more I taught the more I enjoyed Jiu Jitsu.
In 2017 with the blessing of professor Caio, I started the Yuri Simoes Association, under the umbrella of CTA. With my first two affiliates, Josh (Barbarian Jiu Jitsu) and Fernando (Costa Jiu Jitsu), I got to help them in Jiu Jitsu and pass on the lessons I learned. More than anything, helping others has been extremely rewarding. By giving, I was also receiving.

This past month, I competed and lost at worlds. I did not perform to my ability and taking some time off I found a renewed focus for competition. I have recommitted myself to becoming one of the top Jiu Jitsu athletes in the world, and achieving what I know I am capable of. I am still teaching a couple days a week, doing seminars and working on my association, but every day I am working on getting better.
When I came to CTA I didn’t know what to expect or even how long I would stay. I was hoping at best to find a team, and what I found was a second family. Excited for the future and I look forward to every new day and the challenges that lay ahead! #CTA #ONETEAM #ONEFAMILY #MYTEAM #MYSECONDFAMILY