Staff Columnists
WALKER: My first day with Team Curran MMA in Crystal Lake, Ill.
Feb 28, 2012 - 7:45:20 PM WALKER: My first day with Team Curran MMA in Crystal Lake, Ill.

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By: Brad Walker, MMATorch Contributor

Life can yield some amazing experiences for us all. As we walk along the ever extending and flourishing path of time, some people become business moguls, others become animal breeders or custom car builders, as for me - I became an all-around MMA aficionado. I grew up watching these warriors fight to be called the best, and it is something that has stuck with me well into my adult life (Obviously, since I am writing this column). I have attended live fights, I have watched the compilations that people have put together, and I have had the honor of meeting many of the fighters, however I had never learned the skills that these modern day gladiators use in the cage, and that is about to change. This past weekend myself and my family relocated to a different suburb of Chicago, and in doing so landed ourselves a five minute drive away from the very underrated Team Curran MMA facility. Naturally, being a contributor for MMATorch and a lifelong fan, I saw this as a sign, a perfect opportunity to find out what it's like to learn these skills from some of the best in the game today.

So today, I hopped in my car, turned on the ignition on and started my five minute conquest to the gym, where I would be meeting with CEO of SuckerPunch Entertainment, Brian Butler. As soon as you walk into the gym it only takes an iota of a moment to realize it is to an MMA lover what it would be like for an art fan to lay their eyes on the Mona Lisa for the first time. There is a large workout area with weights and machines on one side, and on the other side, an endless world of MMA to the horizon. I walked in during some mat work where Pat and Jeff Curran were working on the mat with the likes of Mark Hominick and Felice Herrig - some of the best in the world, as well as some students. In the seating area just before the wrestling mats was the man himself, Brian Butler.

I sat and chatted with Brian, picking his brain about the company he had built and why he decided to get into the business. He is a very engaging individual and has done some spectacular things in his three years of working in mixed martial arts. In fact, as far as I know, he is the only manager who has stepped in the ring for a fight of his own, just to see what it was like for his fighters on the day of a fight, and he won. As we chatted, the fighters on the mats started to thin out and Jeff Curran and Felice Herrig made their way to the octagon directly behind me for some pad work. Brian and I chatted a bit more, but my focus shifted to the incredible amount of noise coming from the octagon behind me, which was Herrig putting one heck of a beating on those pads; it was an incredible display to see someone who looks so small put so much power behind their strikes.

The entire gym is gorgeous, from the color schemes to the layout, and although it is smaller than their previous location, the open floor plan makes it feel very inviting. You walk in the door and it feels like you tripped and landed in MMA heaven, it's an experience in itself just to open the door. There is a wall of fame containing pictures of the Currans, as well as Felice Herrig and Bart Palaszewski. There is no doubt as soon as you gain understanding of your surroundings that you are in a place of professionals, and a fantastic place to learn. So, I did what I came there to do, I walked up to the front desk, picked up a membership form, and filled it out.

That's really all it took to become the newest member of one of the most underrated MMA gyms on the planet, filling out some papers and initialing a few forms. As I looked around the gym I soaked it all in, the greatness contained within, the incredible fighters that trained there, and the fact that they would be teaching me the crafts they use inside of the cage, it was surreal. Getting the chance to meet a man who has such a great mind for the business like Brian Butler on the same day as I joined the gym made for one heck of an experience at their facility; but seeing the pros in training was also intense. As I was signing the papers to become a member and picking my membership plan I was approached by Herrig who was extremely warm and talkative. It was a great pleasure to see that these immensely talented fighters were so humble and approachable. Felice and I chatted momentarily about a forthcoming interview we were setting up, but she had to make her way out the door en route to the rest of her day.

If any of you are ever in the Crystal Lake area of Illinois I strongly urge you to see this incredible gym, even if just for five minutes of your day, it is not something you would want to miss out on. They sell Team Curran MMA shirts and Gi's as well, so if you want a memento of your visit you can surely get one. The training staff is some of the brightest stars inside of the cage, and as we all know Pat Curran will be fighting in Bellator for the title on March 9, so who wouldn't want to be trained by these guys? It was a phenomenal experience to meet some of these great folks, and it will be an honor to learn some skills from them as well, and I cannot wait to attend my first classes. Team Curran MMA may be underestimated by the MMA community, but it never will be by this writer, and well, student.

If you want to learn more about the gym you can always feel free to visit TeamCurran.com they have classes for adults and children. To read up a bit more on the team at Suckerpunch Entertainment and Brian Butler check out SuckerPunchEnt.com to see their roster of fighters and learn more about the company. I will be writing blogs frequently about my training at the gym, and keeping everyone up to date on how well my plan of getting into shape with MMA training is going. Also next week I will be sitting down with Felice Herrig for an interview, so be sure to stay tuned to the Torch for that as well. Thank you all for reading!

Remember to follow me on twitter at @BradMMATorch