TWO Collie boys took part in their first state Muay Thai fight earlier this month.
Justin O’Halloran, 13, and Hunter Buckley, 12 travelled to Mandurah on Saturday November 7 to compete in the state title fight.
O’Halloran won his fight and although Buckley didn’t win his fight, he was a crowd favourite.
Muay Thai Trainer Waylon Prater has been the boys coach since February and said he was proud of the boy’s achievements.
“The boys did really well, they sure do breed them tough here in Collie,” he said.
“Hunter may have lost the fight but he won the crowd.”
“They nicknamed him Hunter ‘the terminator’ Buckley.”
“His opponent was two years older and twice his height.”
“The judge came and shook his hand after the fight because he was so impressed.”
Mr Prater said the boys trained hard in the lead up to the fight and it was good to see how dedicated they were.
“Building up to the fight the boys personalities really changed, and they became a lot more content with themselves,” he said.
“I don’t know who was more excited about the fight, them or me.”
“The club have stayed strong and are really supportive of each other.”
“They will continue training hard until the next opponent comes along.”
O’Halloran said his favourite part of the day was winning his match.
“My opponent was a similar size, I did a superman slip on him and knocked him down,” he said.
Buckey said he enjoyed the day and the support he received from both the crowd and his coach.
“Leading up to the fight it was daunting, but as soon as I stepped in the ring it all went away,” he said.
“I am going to work on my speed and improve before the next fight.”
“We really appreciate Waylon getting us ready for the fight and preparing us to be good fighters, it really reflected in the ring.”
