Few stories are as compelling as Belal Etiabari‘s meteoric rise from jiu-jitsu novice to elite competitor in just four years. What makes his journey particularly remarkable is not just the speed of his ascension, but the calculated risk he took in abandoning a promising engineering career to pursue his passion for Brazilian jiu-jitsu full-time.
From Rugby Fields to Engineering Textbooks
Born in Afghanistan and raised in New Zealand from the age of one, Etiabari had a sporting background that initially had nothing to do with martial arts.
“I was playing rugby league when I was pretty young, maybe like seven, eight years old,”
he explains in appearance on Jiu-jitsu oracle podcast. After transitioning to basketball in his high school years, he eventually found himself without a competitive outlet around age 20 while pursuing his construction engineering degree at Auckland University of Technology.
His introduction to jiu-jitsu came in 2021, at age 20, when he accompanied a friend to a training session. The experience was humbling but captivating:
“I went with one of my good friends to just a session and then I had a roll with some guy, he was some blue belt, and he just smashed me. He submitted me so many times… and then ever since then, I kind of just fell in love with it.”
Balancing Books and Submissions
Unlike many practitioners who take a gradual approach to competition, Etiabari dove in headfirst, competing just two months after starting training while simultaneously pursuing his engineering studies. His competitive nature, honed through years of team sports, pushed him to test his skills early and often, even as he balanced the demands of his academic pursuits.
The COVID-19 lockdowns proved to be a surprising catalyst for his development. While many grapplers saw their progress stall during this period, and students struggled with remote learning, Etiabari found a way to continue developing both academically and athletically.
“My coach back in Auckland, he’s a very good dude and he helped me a lot with my jiu-jitsu. He started training with me and he was starting to come to my house during the lockdown… he would train me for hours.”
This dedicated one-on-one training during lockdown allowed him to develop a guard game and begin exploring leg locks much earlier than most practitioners. By 2022, he had increased his training frequency to twice daily, often cross-training at multiple gyms while maintaining his academic commitments.
The Life-Changing Decision
A pivotal moment came in 2023 when Etiabari made his first training trip to Australia while nearing completion of his degree. The experience was eye-opening:
“I trained at Sydney Wrestling Academy… and I just felt that it was a different level here. Their guys were smashing me. They were blue belts beating me up, and I was a purple belt at that point.”
Rather than being discouraged, this experience motivated him to elevate his game and forced him to confront a critical life decision. After graduating from university with his construction engineering degree in June 2023, Etiabari faced a crossroads that would define his future.
“I finished my degree in construction engineering and then I took up jiu-jitsu full-time,”
Etiabari explains.
“I think I can make a lot more money doing engineering, but I just love jiu-jitsu and I just love training.”
This wasn’t a decision made lightly. With a degree in construction engineering from Auckland University of Technology in hand, Etiabari had a clear path to financial stability and professional success. Instead, he chose to pursue the uncertain world of professional jiu-jitsu, relocating from New Zealand to Melbourne, Australia, to train under ADCC champion Lachlan Giles at Absolute MMA.
Training with the Elite
Etiabari‘s game accelerated rapidly once he began training with world-class competitors like Levi Jones-Leary and Lucas Kanard.
“Training with Levi is amazing. His guard is super hard to pass,”
he explains.
“He’s just got the ability to make you off-balance so quickly.”
The opportunity to learn from ADCC champion Lachlan Giles has been particularly transformative.
“Training with Lachlan is amazing. He always tells me stuff that I’m doing wrong, and I’ve already fixed my game so much just since being with him for three months.”
This exposure to elite-level jiu-jitsu has been crucial to his development. When asked about his rapid improvement, Etiabari points to these training partners:
“Just training with them, just picking up small techniques that they’re doing, I just started stealing it, just kind of adding it to my game.”
What’s Next?
With a purple belt around his waist and his sights set on ADCC trials and major IBJJF tournaments, Belal Etiabari represents a new generation of jiu-jitsu athletes—driven, analytical, and willing to gamble big for the chance at greatness. As more practitioners choose the sport over traditional careers, Etiabari’s story will no doubt serve as a blueprint for what’s possible when talent meets obsession—and smart choices back it all up.
