George Gracie

• Posted by Alphonzo Williams November 2, 2022 Filed in Arts & Culture 46 views
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  LOSING BY WINNING, WALDEMAR SANTANA

  I spend a lot of time on this site referencing the “Gracie Version” of BJJ history. It is the story (based upon facts) crafted by Rorion to promote the particular variant of BJJ that he was selling at the time. The established heroes of his story were Maeda, Helio and Rickson. If they were the heroes of the story, then who was the villain? The answer? Waldemar Santana.  George Gracie

  I had heard the story multiple times from multiple Gracies over the years. Waldemar was their prized student who betrayed the Academy and Helio. He was young, huge and strong and took advantage of the old, small and frail Helio. Waldemar motivated by greed and ego challenged Helio and Helio reluctantly accepted. They fought a Vale Tudo fight for 3 hours and 45 minutes. Helio ultimately lost the fight, but I was told several reasons why he did not really lose. Firstly, Helio showed that a smaller, weaker person could survive in a fight for hours against a larger attacker. Helio’s performance so impressed people, that a day after the fight, there was a line of prospective students around the block at the Gracie Academy eager to sign up. Secondly, that Helio did not lose because Waldemar used Jiu-Jitsu that Helio had taught him. Jiu-Jitsu still won. Jiu-Jitsu was still undefeated and therefore, so was Helio.

  After that fight with Helio, Waldemar disappears from the Gracie story, never to be heard from again. Was he really this evil, backstabbing, dishonorable figure? Was he really this goliath that people said he was? Did he have any skill? After this massive victory over one of the biggest names in history of fighting, he just completely vanishes never to fight or teach again? I was intrigued.

  As it turns out, there is a lot more to the story of Waldemar Santana.

  Waldemar Santana was born in 1929 in the Brazilian northeastern state of Bahia. Unfortunately, not much is known of his early childhood, but as an Afro-Brazilian at that time, he would have lived a lower-class life with not many opportunities for education, income or social advancement. As a youth, he demonstrated significant athletic talent and began training in Capoeira under Manuel dos Reis Machado, also known as Mestre Bimba, in the city of Salvador. Bimba was a significant figure in Capoeira and is credited with the creation of what is now known as the Regional style of the striking art.

  Accounts differ, but Santana may have begun training in Jiu-Jitsu in Salvador as well, before moving south to Rio. The exact date he started training with Carlos and Helio at the Gracie Academy in Rio is also unknown, but it was likely around 1951, when Santana was 22 years old. He quickly became a member of the Academy’s professional fight team and began training daily alongside Carlson Gracie, Helio Vigio, Pedro Hemetrio and the team’s other elite fighters. As a member of the fight team, Waldemar began representing the Gracie Academy in professional fight cards in February 1953, possibly even earlier.

  These matches were critical for the Gracie Academy at the time. During this period, there were numerous Jiu-Jitsu, Judo and Luta Livre (No Gi Submission Grappling) schools vying for students’ tuition money, celebrity clients and lucrative government teaching contracts. For the continued financial success of the academy, it was important that the Gracies remained prominently featured in the newspaper headlines and the new medium of television by continuing to prove their system was the best in professional contests (Gi, No-Gi and Vale Tudo). With Helio in a period of retirement after his loss to Masahiko Kimura in 1951, the burden to “defend the honor” of the academy fell on a young Carlson Gracie (19 years old in 1951) and the fight team.

  It is unconfirmed, but likely, that Waldemar performed custodial work at the Academy to offset the cost of training and his living expenses while in Rio. This would have consisted of cleaning the mats and washing students’ gi’s. It is also possible, that Waldemar actually lived within the Academy, sleeping on the mat for some or all of his time there.

  I will note here about Santana’s height and weight. As he transitioned from certified, Gracie representative to Gracie arch-rival, Santana’s size grew with each recounting of the story. I have heard people claim he was large as 6’4” and 240 pounds. It is similar to people telling a story about how big a fish they once caught was. In reviewing weigh-in results and pictures of Santana standing next to others (see gallery below), it appears that he was only around 5’9” and 180 pounds (at his heaviest). He was thickly muscled and quite an athlete, but he was no behemoth.

  As mentioned earlier, Santana’s first documented, professional fight tool place on Feb 26, 1953. Waldemar was joined on the card by fellow Gracie Academy representatives: Robson Gracie, Helio Vigio and Moacir Braz Ferraz. As there was a shortage of opponents for Gracie representatives, Waldemar and Ferraz competed on the undercard against each other in a ten-minute Sport Jiu-Jitsu match.

  Waldemar continued to compete for the Gracie Academy throughout 1953 and 1954, participating in Sport Jiu-Jitsu, No-Gi Submission Grappling and Vale Tudo fights with significant success. While skilled in all three styles of competition, Waldemar would excel at a style that many of his contemporaries would shy away from, Vale Tudo.

  In 1954, Polish pro-wrestler and fight promoter, Karol Nowina, arrived in Rio and began promoting pro-wrestling shows with worked fights (matches with pre-arranged outcomes). He then tried putting together a shoot match (legitimate competition) with real fighter Rene Bastos. Rene had previously fought two of the Gracie Academy’s stars in Pedro Hemeterio and Helio Vigio and would later take on Joao Alberto Barreto (all three would go on to become Helio Gracie Red Belts).

  While Helio and his students would sometimes fight against pro-wrestlers in legitimate matches, they would often avoid fighting as part of pro-wrestling promotions. Carlos and Helio were concerned, rightfully so, that the public might perceive the Gracie Academy as not offering real fighting if they were too closely entwined with the world of professional wrestling. As referenced in the George Gracie article, not all Gracies had issues participating in pro-wrestling shows or even doing scripted matches.

  Santana wanted to have the Bastos fight and did not care that the legitimate match would be put on by a pro-wrestling promoter. Carlos and Helio were apprehensive but negotiated on Santana’s behalf to ensure the match took place in a format that they deemed acceptable. The No-Gi Submission Grappling match was held on Jan 15, 1955 at the Palacio de Almuminio with Carlos and Helio’s blessing. The match ended in a draw and Waldemar Santana was expelled from the Gracie Academy shortly after.

  Why exactly was Waldemar thrown out of the Academy? Many insiders have claimed a variety of reasons for the falling out, but unfortunately, most don’t hold water. I will review some of the main justifications given along with my thoughts regarding their veracity.

  1. Santana was associated with a fake fight promotion and therefore tarnished the reputation of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu: I don’t find this credible. Carlos and Helio negotiated the contract. That would imply they, at least somewhat, authorized Waldemar to take the match. If they had significant issue with Santana participating in Nowina’s show, they would have not helped with the contract and could have expelled Santana prior to the match.

  2. Santana failed to win the match and embarrassed the academy: Once again, not credible. There were several matches throughout the 1950’s where Gracie representatives and even Gracies themselves drew. There were no other fallings out or expulsions due to having a draw. Draws were acceptable in Carlos and Helio’s eyes as they were non-losses. Gracie Jiu-Jitsu and the Gracie Academy were still undefeated if there was a draw.

  3. There were worked fights on the show’s undercard, and this was too close an association with fake fighting: This may have displeased Carlos and Helio, but this would not have been a surprise to them. They knew who the promoter was and what other matches would be part of the show. They agreed to the terms, so it is unlikely, this would have caused a rift.

  4. Carlos and Helio wanted to add two Gracie students (one was George Medhi a subject of a future article) to the undercard to get more Gracie promotion at the event. Santana ruined those plans and caused the Gracies to miss out on increased visibility. The promoter responded to Carlos and Helio’s last minute demand to add more of their fighters by stating there was not enough time to make the requested changes. Nowina offered to delay the event so that the additional two matches with Gracie students could be arranged. Santana wanted to fight on the original date and refused to delay the show. Some accounts attribute this to Waldemar not wanting to delay his receipt of the fight purse. Other accounts allude to the fact Waldemar had given tickets to family and friends in Bahia and they were already coming down to Rio to see him fight. He did not want to let them down and cause them unnecessary expense. Regardless of Santana’s reason or reasons, Carlos and Helio were infuriated. I find this explanation quite credible. Carlos and Helio would have likely viewed this behavior as putting the needs of oneself before the needs of the academy. This was often grounds for expulsion, public ridicule and sometimes, violent confrontation. We have seen Carlos and Helio react similarly before and after this incident with Gracie students and even their own brother (George), when they felt people were not following the Academy’s approach to fights, schedules, training, match ups or in other ways not doing what was best for the academy.