Kim Terra Interview

Kim Terra and brother Caio Terra are well-known, high-level competitors and operate one of the top academies in northern California.

Kim is set to face current EBI Light Heavyweight Champion Garry Tonon on Saturday, December 17 at Studio 540. The match will be submission-only. If no one submits his opponent in 30 minutes, the match will go into EBI overtime rules.

The Jiu-Jitsu Times caught up with Kim and asked him a few questions as he prepared for his match.

Here is what he had to say.

Jiu-Jitsu Times: Kim, can you tell us what you have been up to competitively in the last year? Which tournaments have you competed in? Have you won any titles?

Kim Terra: 2016 started out great. I won double gold at the IBJJF San Jose International Open in January, beating bigger guys like Elliot Kelly and Diego Herzog at the Absolute Division. After that, I hurt my neck competing at a NAGA championship in February, so I missed Pans and Worlds, as well as a few super fights I had lined up. Needless to say, I was devastated and really sad during that time, but I managed to recover and come back in October when I won a super fight against Rafael “Barata” in Guatemala. After that I won the IBJJF No Gi Brazilian National’s, and took third place at Worlds No Gi in November.

Jiu-Jitsu Times: You are set to go up against one of the top submission guys currently competing in a sub-only match. How do you see your game matching up against the leg locks and back takes of Tonon? Where do you feel you can find an edge?

Kim Terra: I think Garry is very good at what he does, but I am not worried about what he does well. I am focusing on the holes in his game, such as his guard, for example.

Jiu-Jitsu Times: Who are your main training partners and coaches for this event?

Kim Terra: My main training partner and coach is my brother, Caio Terra. He trains me every day, regardless if I have a match or not. Of course, we are focusing on Garry’s game more these last weeks, but that’s one more perk of having him as a teacher and training partner: he can dissect and simulate anybody’s game. I also train with Denny Prokopos a lot, and all the guys from CTA. We have a really strong competition team here, from blue to black belts.

Jiu-Jitsu Times: Can you describe what a typical training session is like to prepare for a long match like this? What training methods do you use. For example, do you switch in fresh partners or shark tanking to get you ready for a match like this? Do you use any specific training methods to prepare, such as conditioning or position sparring?

Kim Terra: I’ve been doing a lot of 30-minute rounds in preparation for this match. Sometimes I get two guys and they alternate two or three minutes at a time, so they are always more fresh than me. I do this twice a day, and that is it. I don’t lift weights, but I use my versa climber regularly.

Jiu-Jitsu Times: What is your mindset like in preparing to face a top level competitor?
How do you prepare mentally for the match?

Kim Terra: I don’t think about my opponent. If he’s a famous top-level guy or a newcomer, the mindset is always the same: all or nothing.

You can watch Kim Terra take on Garry Tonon live, this Saturday, on FloGrappling.  

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