Ryan 'Chaos' Curtis joins us in the studio for episode #072 of Paddy Holohan's No Shame Podcast. Ryan is an MMA flyweight, with a professional record of 4-1 & trains out of SBG Charlestown under the guidance Coach Owen Roddy. Curtis recently made his Bellator debut in February at Dublin's 3 Arena with an impressive first round TKO over Luis Gonzalez.
On this weeks podcast Ryan talks to Paddy about his Inner City upbringing & why he's incredibly proud of where he's come from. He discusses the togetherness of his community & how he often brings an army to his fights, selling out the front row everywhere he goes. Curtis likens his support to that of 300 Spartans, even the postman shows up.
Ryan has been with Coach Owen Roddy from the very start at SBG Charlestown. Curtis linked up with Roddy back in the Primal days & speaks of his admiration for his mentor. In a time of experimentation, Ryan explains how Owen's training methods proved to be a constant source of reliable knowledge when other techniques across various disciplines & codes often proved to be hit & miss. Curtis talks about how far MMA has come since then, explaining that facilities have never been better in the sport.
Watch episode #072 of Paddy Holohan's No Shame Podcast below
He understands how young fighters today may not fully appreciate the modern facilities they train in, since it's all they've known but insists that there's no excuses for not showing up to the Gym. Before he could drive, Ryan used to get a bus to & from training 6 times a day, always finding a way to make training, even with full time job. Ryan still works today as a barber, not because he needs to but because it's a welcome distraction from the intense nature of being a fighter & he enjoys doing it.
Ryan's mother tragically passed away in 2016 in the build up to his first Bamma fight & Curtis discusses the incredible bond he had with her. Ryan's father died when he was 2 months old & his mother took on the role of both parents, coupled with the fact he was the baby of the family, Ryan admits he was a complete mammy's boy & felt absolutely lost without her. He explains how he inherited his toughness from his mother, something which helped him to overcome such tragic loss in the lead up to the, then, biggest fight of his career. He tells Paddy how he's been since then & whenever he's feeling low he imagines what she'd say to him, in that wonderfully explicit, endearing way only an Irish mother can get away with.
Listen to episode #072 of Paddy Holohan's No Shame Podcast below
Curtis has entertaining & ambitious style both inside & out of the cage & discusses the importance of being the full package. He explains how It's not enough to be a good fighter alone anymore & why it's essential to have a unique character that people can relate to. Unique is definitely something that you can attribute to Ryan, a man who just hours earlier rocked into SBG Charlestown in a 'Chaos Curtis' Robe. Curtis' fashion sense is as impressive as his fighting style & along with a charismatic attitude has all the attributes needed to be a future star of the sport. We just wish he wore that lavish fur coat Paul Fogarty warned us of.
Some brilliant stories in this episode, with honourable mentions going to the time Ryan sparred Chris Fields, eating chicken fillet rolls/ lining pockets to make weight & that amateur fight where the DJ played the wrong walkout music, Final Count down kinds of wrong.
This episode of the podcast is an Incredibly engaging conversation from start to finish. In Paddy's words, Ryan is an old-school fighter with a modern twist, something that makes him stand out.
Episode #072 of Paddy Holohan's No Shame Podcast with Ryan 'Chaos' Curtis is out now across all the usual platforms including Youtube, iTunes, Spotify & Stitcher. Make sure you give it a listen/ watch, let us know what you think & the aul like or subscribe wouldn't go a miss either, No Shame.
