Windson Torres

Windson Torres was born on May 17, 2000, in Formosa, a municipality in the interior of Goiás, Brazil. Far from the competitive BJJ hubs of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, Torres gravitated toward combat sports from an early age, channeling his athleticism into structured martial arts training. Formosa provided the backdrop for the early chapters of a sporting development that would eventually carry him to the podiums of the world's most prestigious grappling tournaments.

At age 12, Torres began practicing judo — a discipline that would consume much of his youth and lay the technical foundation for everything that followed. Competing extensively through his teenage years, he developed the explosive hip movement, balance disruption, and spatial awareness that distinguish elite judoka. The discipline forged through years of randori and shiai became one of his most durable competitive assets as his athletic career evolved.

Torres's deep judo background gave him a competitive instinct and physical toolkit that set him apart from grapplers who came to the sport later in life. Years of throwing technique and match-reading ability — skills that take considerable time to develop — translated directly to jiu-jitsu competition at the highest levels.

The natural transition point arrived at age 16. Brazilian judo competition rules expand at that age to allow a broader range of newaza (ground work) techniques, prompting many young judoka to cross-train in jiu-jitsu to sharpen their submissions and positional game. Torres followed this path, seeking out Jackson Oliveira — known within the community as Justo — to develop his ground work at a local Checkmat-affiliated gym in Goiás. The partnership between Torres and Oliveira proved to be the defining coaching relationship of his career, with Oliveira guiding him through every belt promotion.

For a period, Torres balanced both sports simultaneously, competing in judo and jiu-jitsu while earning a Physical Education degree at a local university. The COVID-19 pandemic forced a period of reflection that clarified his priorities. When competition resumed, Torres had made a deliberate choice: leave judo behind and invest fully in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. That pivot marked the beginning of a rapid and sustained rise on the international grappling circuit.

Few competitors of his generation assembled a brown belt résumé as decorated as the one Torres built between 2023 and 2024. His emergence on the international stage came into focus at the 2023 IBJJF European Championship, where he claimed a bronze medal, and continued at the 2023 IBJJF World Championship, where he earned another bronze — two results that confirmed his place among the sport's most dangerous competitors in the Super-Pesado division.

A Season of Title Contention

The 2024 season elevated Torres from promising prospect to undeniable title contender. He opened the year with a silver medal at the IBJJF European Championship, held January 20–27, 2024, in Paris — a result that underscored his consistency at marquee events. The Pan Championship added both a silver and a bronze to his collection, confirming that Paris was no outlier. Then, at the 2024 IBJJF World Championship, Torres reached the summit of colored-belt competition, claiming gold at brown belt in the Super-Pesado division — the most coveted title available outside the black belt ranks. A bronze at the 2024 CBJJ Brazilian Nationals rounded out an extraordinary campaign.

The Black Belt Promotion

The arc of his 2024 season made the timing of what came next feel inevitable. On June 5, 2024, Jackson Oliveira promoted Torres to black belt — a full-circle moment in which the coach who first introduced him to jiu-jitsu formally elevated him to the sport's highest rank. Oliveira had been present for every belt promotion throughout Torres's career, and the ceremony represented the culmination of a partnership built on years of shared work on the mats in Goiás.

At black belt, Torres competes under the banner of Six Blades Jiu-Jitsu. While his foundational jiu-jitsu development took place at a Checkmat-affiliated gym under Jackson Oliveira, Torres carries the Six Blades flag into international competition at the elite level. He competes in the Super-Pesado division, with the weight limit set at 100.50 kg (222.0 lbs).

His transition to black belt produced an immediate statement. At the 2025 IBJJF European Championship, Torres claimed gold in the Super-Pesado division — a title that confirmed his decorated brown belt career was a preview of things to come rather than a peak already passed. The victory demonstrated that the technical qualities refined across years of judo and jiu-jitsu translate seamlessly to the black belt stage, where margins are thinner and the field is at its most formidable.

Known by the nickname "Wind" — a natural shortening of his given name — Torres has built a reputation as a dynamic and technically complete competitor. His judo background infuses his jiu-jitsu with physical intensity and positional aggression, distinguishing him within the Super-Pesado division and marking him as one of the most compelling athletes to watch at the elite level.