Erik Petravicius has been a fighter his entire life.

Since he first took to the mat to train as a kickboxer as a child through his time in the U.S. Army, Petravicius’ life has revolved around the combat arts.

Petravicius – along with a cadre of coaches including Jonte Willis, David Homes, Ron Pittman, Chris Holmes and Dwain Dakarai – trains six fighters in boxing, kickboxing and mixed martial arts out of Auburn’s Vision Quest gym as part of Rude Awakening MMA.

For Petravicius, it’s a chance to do what he loves.

“I just have a passion for fighting sports, boxing, kickboxing and MMA,” he said.

Petravicius has been training in the martial arts since the age of 6, when he worked under Neil Singleton, a 10-time kickboxing world champion back in his hometown of Chicago Heights, Ill.

After joining the military, Petravicius continued to train in the ring, adding to his skills at the U.S. Army’s Combatives School at Fort Benning, Ga.

After serving eight years of active duty in the Army, Petravicius decided to start a security company.

“I started it in 2007, just prior to being mobilized and beginning to work at Fort Lewis,” he said. “I had a few contracts going, but working at Fort Lewis took all my time.”

After serving out his reserve commitment to the Army, Petravicius tried to restart his company, but realized he didn’t have the energy to do so.

“I had lost my drive,” he said.

The attempt, however, wasn’t a complete wash.

Initially, Petravicius and his partner in the company trained their security employees in self-defense and martial arts.

“My partner thought it would be a good idea to start a gym,” Petravicius said. “And we were going to incorporate that into our training facility.”

After the company folded, Petravacius found that many of the guys he had been training, former employees with his security company, wanted to continue their martial arts training.

“As we started that, about a month or two into it, the guys wanted to start doing MMA and start a team,” he said.

In 2009, one of Petravacius’ proteges, Emmanuel Carter, took to the ring for the first time, a kickboxing bout. And he won.

In January 2010, Rude Awakening officially was born.

Petravicius said his aspiration is to provide a complete home for his roster of fighters, which includes Carter, Willis, Calvin E. Kennon Jr., Neil Anderson, Mike Burgos and James McGrath

“We determined that we wanted the team to be for the athlete’s benefit,” he said.

After trying to turn professional himself, Petravicius realized how difficult it was and instead vowed to help other athletes achieve their dream.

“It’s harder than it looks,” he said. “We just wanted to put together a team that would help somebody who wanted to turn pro. And help their financial situation, help them find a job, their living situation.”

So far, the results have been overwhelmingly positive.

Willis has compiled a 6-0 record as a professional boxer, and is 1-0 in MMA fights.

Carter is 5-1 in MMA, 8-1 in boxing and 1-0 kickboxing as an amateur, and Kennon is undefeated as an amateur in boxing and MMA.

Rude Awakening will host a fight card Feb. 26 at the Elks Lodge at 1965 S. Union St. in Tacoma.

Ultimately, Petravicius hopes to guide one of his fighters to a championship.

“We want to help them in training and mentor them in and out of the ring,” he said. “Basically look out for them like family.”

For more information on the team, go to www.rudeawakeningnw.com.