One of jiu-jitsu's most decorated competitors revealed he started testosterone replacement therapy after years of low energy, while another world champion used his own doping past to warn younger grapplers away from shortcuts.
Reviewed by BJJ Gyms · Updated 2026-07-31
Figures drawn from Roger Gracie's and Braulio Estima's July 2026 comments as reported by BJJ Eastern Europe and BJJ Doc.
Roger Gracie, one of the most decorated competitors in jiu-jitsu history, said publicly that he has started testosterone replacement therapy after roughly two years of declining energy and persistent brain fog. He said natural approaches hadn't resolved the symptoms, which eventually led him to a medically supervised program through a men's health clinic.
Three months in, he described the change as significant, saying his mental clarity is amazing. He's since encouraged other men over 40 dealing with similar symptoms to get their hormone levels checked by a doctor rather than assuming fatigue is just a normal part of aging or a hard training schedule.
The disclosure lands with some irony attached. Gracie has previously been outspoken about the fairness problem created by anabolic steroid use in competition, arguing that athletes using banned substances gain an advantage no amount of training can offset for a clean competitor standing across from them.
TRT under medical supervision for a diagnosed hormone deficiency is a different category from competing while using undisclosed anabolics, and Gracie has framed his own treatment that way. Still, the contrast between his past comments and his current regimen is exactly the kind of nuance that gets lost once a headline travels beyond the original interview.
The same week, four-time IBJJF world champion and two-time ADCC medalist Braulio Estima spoke publicly about the danger of PED use among younger grapplers chasing titles. His warning carries extra weight because of his own history: a positive USADA test tied to a supplement he took after competing at the 2014 IBJJF World Championship cost him that title and led to a two-year suspension.
Estima's case remains one of only two USADA-confirmed doping positives in IBJJF history since testing began in 2013. His central point wasn't really about rankings or medals, it was that young athletes chasing an edge often don't understand the internal health damage they're risking, pointing to cardiac problems seen in some young bodybuilders as a cautionary example.
Most people rolling at a local academy will never face a drug test, but the underlying gap Estima is pointing at still shows up in gym culture: the pressure to look or perform a certain way, and the temptation to reach for a shortcut instead of consistent training and recovery. That pressure exists at every level, not just among title contenders.
It's also a reminder that hormone health is a legitimate, boring, unglamorous part of training long-term, not a scandal by default. If fatigue or a stalled recovery is getting in the way of showing up consistently, whether you train gi or a no-gi system like 10th Planet, a conversation with an actual doctor is a more useful next step than guessing.
Here's the quick version of what happened and why it's more nuanced than a single headline suggests.
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No. He described a medically supervised testosterone replacement program for a diagnosed hormone issue, which is a different category from undisclosed PED use in competition.
Because he tested positive himself in 2014, lost his IBJJF title, and served a two-year suspension, so his caution about PEDs comes from direct experience rather than a hypothetical concern.
Rare. Estima's case is one of only two USADA-confirmed positives in IBJJF history since drug testing began in 2013.
That persistent fatigue or stalled recovery is worth a real medical conversation rather than a shortcut, and that hormone health is a normal part of training long-term, not just an elite-athlete issue.