When on the national scene of mixed martial arts (MMA) the debate of who has the ‘material’ to end up becoming a star is put on the table, many voices point directly to a 22-year-old man from Madrid: Diego Esteche. The young man … wrestler, originally from Fresnedillas de la Oliva, is seen as the ‘pearl’ of the Sierra Oeste, an athlete with unusual talent who has managed to become champion of Spain in wrestling and amateur MMA multiple times.
His story is that of an athlete forged with discipline, humility and unwavering ambition. From a very young age he showed a special connection with combat sports, standing out first in wrestling, where he began to build a track record that today impresses as much as it inspires. Diego Esteche learned early that winning is not just about lifting a trophy, but about improving yourself every day.something that he has been engraved in and tries to do day after day with his brother Álex at AFC Villalba, under the supervision of Mario Alonso.
«In recent months I have made the complete transfer to mixed martial arts, with many striking sessions with Mario. I did wrestling at the High Performance Center, at the Rivas Fight Club, but the rest at AFC Villalba. Now I am complementing it with grappling and the great coaches we have like Roman or Fabiano,” he says in an interview with ABC MMA. This transition has led him to now have a 14-1 record and to be seriously thinking about his professional debut in MMA.
«In 2026 we are going to go professional, but these are things that my team decides, there are many people behind thinking, making decisions so that everything goes well, I hope it can be before summer. I’m going to fight my last amateur fight in March», reveals in this newspaper. His consecration as Spanish MMA champion has not been a stroke of luck, but the result of years of hard training, personal sacrifices and a work ethic that few can match. And now he wants to follow the same steps, but in the category where there is no turning back: professionalism.
Being someone so successful in different combat disciplines naturally comes with added pressure. That ‘this one is going to arrive’ that Diego Esteche already routinely hears when people talk about him, but it doesn’t affect him in the slightest, quite the contrary. «The pressure of expectations placed on me does not weigh on me at all; on the contrary, it would hurt me if after so many achievements and so much time this was not recognized. It is a privilege that people ask me, if you are not worth it, they will never ask you,” says El Blessed, the nickname by which he is known.
Thus, the young fighter is taking his last steps as an amateur, one last bullet with eight-ounce gloves (in professional they are four), which he will only shoot because it will be done at a WOW event at the Madrid Arena. «The Madrid Arena emboldens you, in the end having so many people cheering you on and shouting at you is a privilege, it makes you happy and want to fight. If it weren’t in this venue, I’m sure I wouldn’t do another more amateur fight, because it’s very motivating to fight there,” he points out.
For the youngest people in the town, it is a real example that constant effort can open any door, even from the smallest places, such as Fresnedillas de la Oliva, a sort of Spanish Dagestan due to its climatic conditions and the high number of competitors in such a sparse population. And his friend Moha and brother Álex are also looking to carve out a future in mixed martial arts, other talents to take into account. “I see my brother as very prepared, he is a boy who is very complete, he is improving his striking a lot, he is more uncomfortable than me, longer than me, he has even better leg tackles, he works very well in the fight,” says Diego Esteche.
