Born in Canberra in 1981, Ian Bone did not come out fighting. Sport’s mad from a young age, he played everything from rugby league, rugby union AFL,  hockey and baseball during his early days. At age 18 he left Canberra for Townsville to join the Australian Defence Force, where he served in both East Timor and the Solomon Islands with 2RAR. Eight years later he put in his discharge and started looking for the next challenge. He decided to pursue his ever-growing interest in what makes a warrior by combining personal and mixed martial arts. Never one to do anything by half, as he worked to become a certified personal trainer he took up kick-boxing one day and submission training the next. Twelve months later, he entered the ring at Acacia League Club in Brisbane. He won in the first 38 seconds. Ian “The Hitman” Bone was born. Over the next three years he won eleven fights, lost four, and is currently the Rize welterweight champion of Australia. As well as being mixed martial artsfighter, Ian is a trainer for the North Queensland Fight Academy, based in the Health and Fitness Studio in Townsville. When he’s not training others or himself, he spends the rest of his time with family and friends, occasionally adding to his ongoing personal tattoo collection. Despite looking a little like a villain from an 80’s action movie and taking natural amount of stick as a red head, Ian was never much of a brawler. “Scraps in schoolyards or the streets are where cowards and drunks start fights. It’s usually people picking on smaller guys or two guys beating up someone else” he said. Mixed martial arts is something very different. “It’s the ultimate contests between two people who’ve agreed to put everything on the line and see who’ll win. It’s a real test of strength, of skill, and of character” says Ian. “In the ring, it’s two warriors who have trained for hundreds of hours to get to that point, to test their skills against each other. “You get this amazingly clear mind inthe ring – you have to. All you think about is fighting and winning very second of the fight. There’s no time to think you don’t like it, or how hurts, you just need to think about how to win or you don’t”. “As soon as anything else gets in there you’re gone.” His advice for anyone who wants to take it up mixed martial arts is simple – you need to train, train, train and then train some more. “Anyone who wants to train as a fighter needs to find a good club with some mentors willing to guide you. You need to breathe, eat and sleep mixed martial arts” he says. “It’s just as much mental as it is physical, there are more tactics in a fifteen minute fight than you’ll ever find in a 90 minute football match.” Not that Ian thinks MMA is just about the competition. “Mixed Martial Arts has made me a better person” “It’s a great way to go for people looking for useable self defence training” And for those who just want to get fit all round, it’s a great sport. You will never be fitter or moreconfident.”