Hector Morales’ journey into jiu-jitsu began as a hobby, in his spare time, while working as a manager at car dealerships in the Rio Grande Valley.
The hobby grew into passion through the years, and he has now blossomed into a full-fledged career for “El Terrible.” Morales recently said goodbye to the corporate world and decided to devote his life to competing in high-level jiu-jitsu tournaments.
The results have been exactly what Morales envisioned — winning first place in the Master 2 Purple Belt Medium-Heavy Division at the World No Gi 2021 IBJFF Jiu-Jitsu Championship on Oct. 10 at the Curtis Culwell Center in Garland.
“I just devoted my time to jiu-jitsu, and I had the Worlds coming up. I just got ACL surgery in January, so it was a big goal of mine to go to this tournament and bring back first,” Morales said. “I just wanted to take advantage of what’s left of my youth. I had already been in the corporate world for a long time. I kite-surf, I snowboard, I wakeboard, I mountain bike, but Jiu-jitsu is legit competition. To know you’re out-working other people that have the same goal — it’s very physical, it’s a one-on-one thing, and that’s what made me really go for it.”
Morales played baseball at Sharyland High School before graduating in 2002. He said he would have wrestled too, but the sport wasn’t offered during his high school days.
Since then, Morales has studied Brazilian jiu-jitsu under Carlos Diego Ferreira, a mixed martial arts fighter who competes in the UFC’s lightweight division.
“Jiu-jitsu has exploded a lot, and it’s an extremely physical sport, and it’s all up to you if you want to win. A lot of the fighters are physically ready, but mentally is the question. It’s a huge mental game,” Morales said.
Part of the mental battle “El Terrible” had to conquer was fighting back from ACL reconstruction in January and a staph infection in his hand which required antibiotics leading up to the World No Gi 2021 IBJFF Jiu-Jitsu Championship in October.
“God was telling me ‘I know you want it, but let’s see how bad you want it.’ I felt like it was a challenge in how bad I wanted that victory,” Morales said of fighting through adversity. “Even though my hand was in extreme pain, it was very swollen, but during the fights, I felt nothing. I was just focused on my opponents.”
Each opponent Morales faced at the 2021 Worlds was ranked higher due to a nearly 30-month layoff from competition. Still, “El Terrible” persevered and secured a rear-naked choke submission in his opening match of the tournament, and outscored his next two opponents to win gold.
“I knew my strength. Them feeling my grips on their wrists and on their necks, I was going to break them mentally, physically,” he said. “I didn’t even want them to think they had a chance.”
Once on top of the podium standing in first place, Morales lowered his head to have the gold medal he earned placed around his neck. That wasn’t the highlight of the moment, however.
“I wanted to make sure my team got the recognition they deserved, because in order for me to get to that stage and get prepared, I have to have teammates and coaches that guides me in practice and pushes me,” Morales said. “Bending down to get the medal was nice, but turning around and showing my team’s name, Team Ferreira on my back and pointing with my fingers, giving my team recognition was what I wanted to do, bring Team Ferreira to the biggest stage. I know Diego has already done it with the UFC. He brought legit Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu to the Valley, and he’s made me a better person not only with martial arts, but with good habits. He brought the UFC and Jiu-Jitsu name to the Valley, and I’m his first world champion, so I’m very proud to represent Diego, represent the 956, Mexicanos, Americanos and just work hard, and that’s what we do, we work hard.”
The 37-year-old Morales doesn’t plan on slowing down anytime soon. He’s in Anaheim, California, competing in the World 2021 IBJFF Jiu-Jitsu Championship and 2021 International Master North America IBJJF Jiu-Jitsu Championship.
“I have to be humble, but I have to keep the strong mentality to know that I’m competing against myself. How much time did I put in on the mats, how much time did I put in the gym, how much time did I put in the pool, how much time did I put in with video?” Morales said. “Learning how to control your emotions is a big mindset coming into these competitions. It’s all about controlling the emotions and making sure you’re going in there extremely clear-minded and with one goal in mind, and that’s to come out on top.”
To keep up with Morales’ Jiu-Jitsu career, follow his Instagram @hectorelterriblemorales.
