Featured Fighter Alana “Avatar” Neal
This months NRF member featured fighter….
Name: Alana Neal
Fight Name: Avatar
Fight Style: Muay Thai
Fight Stats:
3 fights
3 wins
Alana fights out of Olsens Muay Thai Factory in Perth. She started training 2 years ago after sparking some interest while watching UFC on TV.
“I stumbled across a UFC fight on TV. I had never heard of UFC or MMA previously. I was highly intrigued so I started watching the TUF series and couldn’t believe the mental & physical boundaries these guys push. Obviously hearing muay thai & BJJ throughout, I decided to look up my local muay thai gym and just turned up one day to give it a go”
“I have heard so many stories from fighters about how martial arts has saved them. It is quite common to come across people in this sport with unfortunate stories and upbringings. I had a great childhood, family and friends supporting me throughout my life. So I guess for me it was about trying to challenge myself. To be honest it was something I thought I probably couldn’t do so I just wanted to see how far I could go with it”
Winning all 3 of her fights, for someone who didn’t even think should could do the sport, Alana’s doing a damn good job! She’s is hoping to snatch herself up a title belt in her future career as a fighter…”I just want to see how far I can go and keep pushing myself. However, I wouldn’t mind a title belt and would love the opportunity to represent my country at some stage in the future”
Alana has been into sports most of her life and when not training 6 days a week 1-2 times a day, what does her “downtime” consist of?…well…more sport of course! “I grew up playing basketball so I try to squeeze in a game or two when I’m not training. I also enjoy spending time with my partner, family and friends. I love to travel, especially around Asia so Muay Thai is a great excuse for a quick trip to Thailand”
Favorite memories so far? “My first fight in Darwin. I was so proud of myself for getting in the ring as I had never been more terrified in my life. I was quite ill and had a few dramas that resulted in a trip to emergency upon my arrival home so the win felt well deserved.
I love watching Miriam Nakamoto and have had the opportunity to train with Tiana Caverley from Perth. Not only does she train incredibly hard, she is a really down-to-earth chick and happy to help and support us baby fighters”
Up next for Alana is a fight in Thailand early March and she would love the opportunity to compete in the Arafura Games. Alana has her sights set on getting in the ring as much as she can next year, to get as many fights under her belts as possible.
Final words from Alana “Thank you to my trainer Oliver Olsen, all of my training partners at OMTF, my partner Mei-li and my family and friends for all your support”
An up and coming fighter to watch out for!
