MMA-URLS

LAS VEGAS, Nev. (May 11, 2012) - All 24 fighters, including main event opponents Joe "Stitch ‘Em Up" Schilling (12-2, 10 KO's) of Los Angeles, Calif. and Simon Marcus (26-0, 19 KO's) of Toronto, Ontario Canada, made weight yesterday at Body English at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino for the Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus II, WBC championship full-rules Muay Thai event at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Saturday, May 12, live on LionFightPromotions.com. Schilling, the WBC Light Heavyweight Champion, and Marcus, an unbeaten top contender, both tipped the scales at 174 pounds for the highly-anticipated rematch to their first meeting at The Joint on Feb. 25 when Marcus scored a controversial, first-round TKO victory in a winner-take-all contest. The live stream of the 12-bout card, which will be facilitated by Go Fight Live, will begin at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on LionFightPromotions.com and can be purchased for a one-time credit card charge of $14.99. In the co-main event and a second highly-anticipated rematch, Filipino American Romie Adanza (16-3, 7 KO's) of Irvine, Calif. will face off with Thanit "Boom" Watthanaya (45-12, 12 KO's) of Vancouver, BC Canada via Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand. Thai superstar Mongkon "Malaipet" Wiwasuk (137-27-5, 26 KO's), fighting out of Fresno, Calif. will put his WBC national welterweight (147 pounds) strap on the line against aggressive-minded counterpuncher Justin Greskiewicz (17-8, 3 KO's) of Philadelphia, Pa. Seasoned technician Matt Embree (20-3, 9 KO's) of Toronto, Ontario Canada will a tough, highly-experienced adversary in former world champion Nils Widlund (34-1, 12 KO's) of San Diego, Calif. via Stockholm, Sweden. Undefeated rising star Tiffany Van Soest (2-0) of San Diego, Calif. will take on fellow prospect Heidi Otterbein (3-1, 1 KO) of Las Vegas via Vancouver, BC Canada. in a 125 pound catchweight bout. In a matchup of two experienced, Las Vegas-based MMA competitors who have decided to test their combative skills in the Muay Thai ring for the first time in their respective careers, Javier Torres (0-0) will square off with Michael Madrid (0-0) in a 170 pound catchweight fight. Fresh off his fifth professional victory at Lion Fight Promotions' last event on Feb. 25, Scotty Leffler (5-2, 3 KO's) of Las Vegas will return to action against promising upstart Artem Sharoshkin (3-1) of San Diego, Calif. in a welterweight (147 pounds) affair. Topping the five-bout preliminary card will be undefeated 19-year-old prospect Guilherme Bertholdo (6-0, 2 KO's), the nephew of UFC Middleweight Champion and pound-for-pound great Anderson Silva. Bertholdo will look to extend his perfect run when he faces off with Chris Lazaro (7-3, 1 KO) of Las Vegas, Nev. in a welterweight (147 pounds) matchup. About Lion Fight PromotionsLion Fight Promotions is a Las Vegas, Nevada-based world championship Muay Thai kickboxing promotion dedicated to producing matchups between the best Muay Thai fighters in the world in their respective weight classes. Led by former Las Vegas casino executive, Scott Kent, the promotional company has been developed in consultation with Christine Toledo, one of the sport's most popular champions and star of the Oxygen Network reality television show Fight Girls. Both Kent and Toledo share a common passion for Muay Thai and are working together to promote the sport.

Posted in: fight, ko, muay, la, thai

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Welcome back to my online diary documenting my very amateur experience training in Muay Thai. If you missed the previous entries on Bloody Elbow, read them here. ...That is the question. When I tell people that I train Muay Thai I typically get one of two responses. First, blank stares of confusion. You train what? Second, the inevitable question - have you had any fights? And of course the answer to that is no. I have not had any fights, though I do spar regularly. And then they are often just a little let down. Oh. No fights. Oh well... Recently, I talked about the feeling you get when sparring is really working for you - that feeling that everything that matters is here in this ring. I love that feeling, and I have to assume that it's even stronger in a fight. I didn't undertake this training plan with the idea of ever having an actual fight, and yet now I am not so sure. Am I ready for a fight right now? Certainly not. I look at the guys at my gym who are taking fights and they are leagues above me. And at 34 years old, I'm certainly not going to ever become a pro fighter. But am I missing out on a part of Muay Thai if I never take a single fight? Perhaps it's an irrelevant conversation to have right now. Perhaps I'm so far from ready for a fight that I shouldn't be thinking about it. Perhaps the very fact that when I think about taking a fight I get nervous about being injured shows that I should give this idea up. And yet it's a nagging thought in my head. Should this be my goal? Because I worry that if it's not, if I never push myself towards that goal, that over time my push to train will fade. If I'm never actually trying to use the skills I have learned, will I eventually lose that motivation to keep learning them? It's a tough question, and one that stays rattling around in my brain. There's no easy answer right this moment, but for now, I'll keep thinking. Question for the week: Those of you who have fought, either at an amateur or professional level, how did you decided it was time to take the plunge and try it? Video of the week: Once again, I highlight the fantastic "Muay Thai Minute" YouTube series - a great series of quick clips highlighting proper Muay Thai techniques, just 1 minute(ish) each. This week, a simple parry that I like as a good use of my reach. Watch it in the full entry. I train Muay Thai under Andre Madiz at Conviction Martial Arts, 4430 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL. www.convictionfitness.com. If you are in the Chicago area, come join us, and be sure to say hello.

Posted in: fight, question, muay, train, thai

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LAS VEGAS (May 8, 2012) - Undefeated 19-year-old prospect Guilherme Bertholdo (6-0), the nephew of UFC Middleweight Champion and pound-for-pound great Anderson Silva, will look to extend his perfect run in Muay Thai's amateur ranks and move one step closer to turning professional when he faces off with Chris Lazaro (7-2) of Las Vegas, Nev. in a welterweight (147 pounds) matchup on the undercard of the Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus II full-rules Muay Thai event at The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Saturday, May 12, live on LionFightPromotions.com. "I am excited to finally test my skills against top level amateur opponents," said Bertholdo, a member of Black House Team Nogueira, the famed training camp that is also home to Silva and is headed by MMA legends and twin brothers Antonio "Rodrigo" and Antonio "Rogerio" Nogueira in San Diego, Calif. where he trains under Kru (trainer) Alex Palma. In Brazil, Bertholdo took up Karate and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at an early age before relocating to San Diego with his family. While his father has schooled him Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and helped Bertholdo attain the rank of purple belt in the submission fighting discipline, Bertholdo has gravitated to the sport of Muay Thai due to his love for kicking and punching. "Striking is my passion," he said. "My Kru (trainer) has really taught me to use my hands and angles and, because of this, I've learned to appreciate the beauty of Muay Thai. MMA is a sport that I eventually will focus on in the future but, for now, I want to sharpen my striking and compete in an all-striking sport." Bertholdo said he is knocking on the door of gaining his United States citizenship and would like to eventually represent America as a member of the U.S. National Muay Thai Team. "I am learning from my senior (training partners) how to conduct myself and perform like a true fighter, I am not attending college. Black House Team Nogueira is my college." Bertholdo's opponent, Lazaro, is a 24-year-old member of Hard Knocks Muay Thai gym and student of Renzo Asparria, whom Lazaro has been training with for the last two years. The matchup with Bertholdo will be Lazaro's first since he sustained a broken thumb during training last year. "I love this sport and I've been eagerly waiting to get back in the ring. That time has come now that I'm healed up and I'm looking forward to putting on a great show," said Lazaro, a technical fighter known for staying in the pocket with his opponent and throwing hard uppercuts. Reserved ticket seats for Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus II, priced from $45, are on sale at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino box office, all Ticketmaster outlets (800-745-3000) and online at Ticketmaster.com. Doors at The Joint open at 4 p.m. and the first preliminary bout will begin at 5 p.m. The live stream of the 12-bout card, which will be facilitated by Go Fight Live, will begin at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on LionFightPromotions.com and can be purchased for a one-time credit card charge of $14.99. In the highly-anticipated main event, WBC Light Heavyweight (175 pounds) Champion Joe "Stitch ‘Em Up" Schilling (12-2, 10 KO's) of Los Angeles, Calif. will face off with undefeated top contender and bitter rival Simon Marcus (23-0, 18 KO's) of Toronto, Ontario Canada in a grudge rematch after their first meeting on Feb. 25 ended in a controversial first-round TKO in Marcus' favor. In the co-main event and a second highly-anticipated rematch, Filipino American Romie Adanza (16-3, 7 KO's) of Irvine, Calif. will face off with Thanit "Boom" Watthanaya (45-12, 12 KO's) of Vancouver, BC Canada via Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand.for the vacant WBC international super flyweight (115 pounds) championship. Thai superstar Mongkon "Malaipet" Wiwasuk (138-27-5, 26 KO's), fighting out of Fresno, Calif. will put his WBC national welterweight (147 pounds) strap on the line against aggressive-minded counterpuncher Justin Greskiewicz (17-8, 3 KO's) of Philadelphia, Pa. Fresh off his rubber match victory over "Coke" Chunhawat, seasoned technician Matt Embree (20-3, 9 KO's) of Toronto, Ontario Canada will return to Lion Fight action and face another tough, highly-experienced adversary in former world champion Nils Widlund (34-1, 12 KO's) of Stockholm, Sweden. Undefeated rising star Tiffany Van Soest (2-0) of San Diego, Calif. will take on fellow prospect Heidi Otterbein (3-1, 1 KO) of Las Vegas via Vancouver, BC Canada. in a 125 pound catchweight bout. In a matchup of two experienced, Las Vegas-based MMA competitors who have decided to test their combative skills in the Muay Thai ring for the first time in their respective careers, Javier Torres (0-0) will square off with Michael Madrid (0-0) in a 170 pound catchweight fight. Fresh off his fifth professional victory at Lion Fight Promotions' last event on Feb. 25, Scotty Leffler (5-2, 3 KO's) of Las Vegas will return to action against promising upstart Artem Sharoshkin (3-1) of San Diego, Calif. in a welterweight (147 pounds) affair. LION FIGHT MUAY THAI VI: SCHILLING VS. MARCUS IICOMPLETE MAIN FIGHT CARD: Joe Schilling (Los Angeles, CA) vs. Simon Marcus (Toronto, Ontario CANADA)175 lbs / WBC Interim World Title Romie Adanza (Irvine, CA) vs. Thanit Watthanaya "Boom" (Vancouver BC CANADA / THAILAND)115 lbs / WBC International Title Mongkon Wiwasuk "Malaipet" (Fresno, CA / THAILAND) vs. Justin Greskiewicz (Philadelphia, PA)147 lbs / WBC National Title Tiffany Van Soest (San Diego, CA) vs. Heidi Otterbein (Las Vegas, NV / CANADA)125 lbs / no title Nils Widlund (San Diego, CA / SWEDEN) vs. Matt Embree (Toronto, Ontario CANADA)140 lbs / no title Javier Torres (Las Vegas, NV / MEXICO) vs. Michael Madrid (Las Vegas, NV)170 lbs / no title Scotty Leffler (Las Vegas, NV) vs. Artem Sharoshkin (San Diego, CA / RUSSIA)147 lbs / no title COMPLETE UNDERCARD: Jason Andrada (Las Vegas, NV) vs. Jessie Magusen (Fontana, CA) - 125 lbs Josh Shepard (Las Vegas, NV) vs. Amir K Ansari (Shreveport, LA) - 160 lbs Genesis Bravo (Las Vegas, NV) vs. Marie Choi (Irvine, CA) - 112 lbs Chris Lazaro (Las Vegas, NV) vs. Guilherme Bertholdo (San Diego, CA) - 147 lbs Brandon Ebert (Las Vegas, NV) vs. William Briones (Van Nuys, CA) - 135 lbs About Lion Fight PromotionsLion Fight Promotions is a Las Vegas, Nevada-based world championship Muay Thai kickboxing promotion dedicated to producing matchups between the best Muay Thai fighters in the world in their respective weight classes. Led by former Las Vegas casino executive, Scott Kent, the promotional company has been developed in consultation with Christine Toledo, one of the sport's most popular champions and star of the Oxygen Network reality television show Fight Girls. Both Kent and Toledo share a common passion for Muay Thai and are working together to promote the sport.

Posted in: vs, muay, vega, la, thai

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Muay Thai doco

Posted in: muay, thai, thainbspdoco, doco

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Welcome back to my online diary documenting my very amateur experience training in Muay Thai. If you missed the previous entries on Bloody Elbow, read them here. It's been almost a year and a half since I started this journey, and this week marked for me a bit of a personal milestone. For the first time, I really felt like I was not "the new guy." Things clicked, everything worked as I wanted it to, and I thought to myself "I'm not terrible at this!" Which is a pretty great feeling. That's not to say I'm some sort of fantastic fighter at this point - far from it. But I felt truly comfortable in a way I haven't yet, which was quite welcome. This comfort came in sparring this week. Had an excellent sparring session where I was able to, at times, stop thinking and just let myself fight. Walking away from it, I can see how fighters become addicted to the feeling. Of course, I have no desire to just sit around and pat myself on the back. That gets nothing done in the long run. So I got a few pointers from my instructors, thought through things myself, and came up with this checklist of things to focus on next time I spar: Use my reach. This has always been a goal of mine, and I am using it somewhat, but still need to do more. Jabs and teeps, and a lot of them. Don't be predictable, but use that reach to keep my opponent outside always. Keep the hands up when I kick. I wasn't even realizing I was doing this until I got hit a few times. When working pads, I am careful to keep my hands up on the kick, but apparently in the moment of sparring, they drop down, leaving me wide open. No good, and needs to be fixed. My plan here is just to drill kicks, and a lot of them. Be more confident. That's the biggest advice my instructor left me with. And I get what he means completely. One of my issues right now is not delivering my strikes with power when sparring. I'm still not sure how hard to throw a punch to the head or a teep to the body when sparring. I want to establish control with those strikes, but also don't want to be the jerk in sparring who is going too hard. It's a fine balance, and at the moment, I'm being overly cautious and light. Need to work on stepping that up, but not so far. There are other things, but those are the big three. Many thanks to those I worked with who helped me focus on these - it can't be overstated how helpful it is to work with the right group in sparring and training, and the team at Conviction is great. Question for the week: When sparring, how do you best judge the level to go at? Video of the week: I'm adding a new little feature here, highlighting the fantastic "Muay Thai Minute" YouTube series. It's a great series of quick clips highlighting proper Muay Thai techniques, just 1 minute(ish) each. Very cool stuff, and every week I'll feature one. This week, a simple but great teep fake that I am absolutely stealing for next time. Watch the video in the full entry. I train Muay Thai under Andre Madiz at Conviction Martial Arts, 4430 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL. www.convictionfitness.com. If you are in the Chicago area, come join us, and be sure to say hello.

Posted in: time, week, muay, thai, im

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It's been a tumultuous past few weeks for the man known to kickboxing fans around the world as Buakaw Por. Pramuk. As we previously reported, the former K-1 MAX two-time champion left his longtime training camp amidst some nasty accusations of financial mismanagement. Now using the name Buakaw Banchamek (or Buakaw Banchemak depending on which Anglicized spelling you prefer), the Thai legend is now training on his own. And that training has led him to an interesting path - jiu jitsu. Buakaw recently stopped in at Bangkok's Q23 Academy and trained jiu jitsu under Adam Kayoom. Kayoom is a decorated black belt under Ricardo Liborio and one of the top BJJ instructors in Thailand. He had this to say about Buakaw's work in jiu jitsu: Buakaw has a lot of potential. He's very sharp, listens very well to instructions and is able to apply it (the techniques) quickly and very well. And on top of that a real gentleman. Very respectful. A real champion. He was very friendly to my friends and students in and out of the academy. It was a real pleasure to have him on the mats. Obviously it's too early to say if anything will come of this, but it's definitely interesting. With fellow Muay Thai legend Orono Wor Petchpun making the jump to MMA, and with Buakaw's current troubles with his camps, could he also be considering a change? If so, he would be the highest level kickboxer to have ever made the transition to MMA. I'm almost definitely getting my hopes up for nothing here, but as a Buakaw fan and an MMA fan, I can't help but be intrigued. Next up for Buakaw is a Thai Fight event tomorrow (April 17) where he is scheduled to face French fighter Mickael Cornubet. There were questions if he would be able to fight on the event due to his Por. Pramuk contract, but it looks like he will indeed be taking part.

Posted in: mma, jitsu, thai, jiu, buakaw

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Two-time K-1 Max champion Buakaw Banchemak (formerly Por Pramuk) got his first taste of mixed martial arts today when he trained with BJJ black belt Adam Kayoom at his Q23 Academy in Bangkok. Buakaw recently left the Por Pramuk camp which had been his home for over a decade and is involved in an ongoing contractual dispute with them. He has made numerous TV appearances in Thailand recently to discuss his issues with Por Pramuk, who reportedly only paid him a tiny fraction of the purse money he earned during a career which saw him win numerous honors including winning K-1 Max two times and becoming Thai Fights champion last year. For the time being Buakaw remains estranged from the camp where he made his name and is training in Surin but during a recent visit to Bangkok he decided to take the opportunity to train from the most respected Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) teacher in all of Thailand. Kayoom is a Muay Thai World Champion himself, although he has never competed on quite Buakaw's level. He is, however, a legend in South East Asian circles as he has his own school in Bangkok, the Q23 Academy, and his extensive list of BJJ honors include being named Australian National Champion, Cyclone Cup Champion, South Brazilian Champion and New South Wales Champion. He also has a reputation as being one of the best BJJ teachers in the region and if Buakaw does decide to add to his Muay Thai arsenal by learning the ground game the Q23 Academy is a great place to start. For his part Kayoom feels that the Thai legend has what it takes to succeed in a second combat sport, "Buakaw has a lot of potential. He's very sharp, listens very well to instructions and is able to apply it (the techniques) quickly and very well. And on top of that a real gentleman. Very respectful. A real champion. He was very friendly to my friends and students in and out of the academy. It was a real pleasure to have him on the mats." Kayoom is the best MMA fighter that Malaysia has ever produced and with black belts in BJJ and Taekwondo and world championships in Muay Thai he has all the tools to succeed as a mixed martial artist. Expect to see him in action at ONE Fighting Championship 'Destiny of Warriors' in Kuala Lumpur on June 23rd. For his part Buakaw is likely to return to Muay Thai action in Pattaya in April 17th when he fights Frenchman Mickael Cornubet. The dispute with Por Pramuk has yet to be settled but the possibility of one of the most successful fighters in K-1 history learning the ground game is sure to excite MMA fans. For more information about Q23 Academy visit: www.thailandbjj.com.

Posted in: champion, bjj, thai, buakaw, por

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One of the best kept secrets in the world of international combat sports is the Muay Thai scene in Australia. Outside of Thailand, Australia features the most competitive and entertaining Muay Thai action you'll find. One of the leading figures in that scene is long-time veteran John Wayne Parr. The kickboxer and Muay Thai fighter has been one of the key figureheads of the Australian scene for years, combining world class skills in the ring with an ambassador's style outside the ring. Now, Parr is promoting a new venture in Australia, and it's one that has generated a lot of talk. On June 23, Parr will present the Boonchu Cup, the first event in a new fighting style he's dubbed the Caged Muay Thai Series. Fights will be full Muay Thai rules, but instead of taking place in a ring as is traditional, they will be in a cage, and fighters will be wearing MMA sized 4 oz gloves. It's an interesting idea that has people talking. Parr has already received public support from UFC fighters Kenny Florian, Dongi Yang, The Korean Zombie Chan Sung Jung, and Dong Hyun Kim. But it also is drawing some detractors who argue that it's not true Muay Thai. I had a chance to speak with Parr to clarify exactly what fans can expect at the Boonchu Cup, plus how he feels about the criticism, and what he thinks of the state of striking in the UFC and MMA today. Fraser Coffeen: First off, can you explain the rules for this event? John Wayne Parr: Rules are the same as Muay Thai, nothing changes there. Fights will either be 3x3 or 5x3 with 2 min break. Everyone must wear MMA gloves, but not all fights will be with elbows. There will still be a 3 knock down rule in effect, but no standing 8 count, if you can't protect yourself or are not fighting back it's over. If you get taken down in a Thai grapple, fight stop, back to the feet then start again. FC: What is the current line-up? JWP: For a Australian show this is a A-grade undercard. Lot's of 50-50 matches so it's very very exciting. Even though I am promoting I don't want a easy fight, Jordan Tai is one of the strongest middleweights to come out of New Zealand. Jordan has heavy hands like myself so the little gloves are going to make things interesting. John Wayne Parr (boonchu) vs Jordan Tai (new zealand)Flip Street (boonchu) vs Chris Wells (new zealand)Thor Hoopmann (boonchu) vs TBAAaron TS2 (strike force) vs Brodie Stradler (joe hilton)Beniah Douma (mad x) vs Matt McTavish (strike force)Mark Lucchiari (strike Force) vs Tainui Crouch (corp box)Jun Lee (boonchu) vs Michael Badato (full force) FC: How did you get the idea for this? JWP: I am a massive fan of UFC, I get all the pay per views and respect all the fighters so much. I was thinking of learning the ground, just so one day in my dreams that I could fight UFC. I am just about to turn 36 so I know my time is running out and could never compete with the elite, so I thought what better way to fight in the cage is if I do it myself. I have had 113 fights in a ring and it has become pretty normal, being locked in a cage with no corners is going to be a rush I haven't felt since I started the sport. With the mma gloves I watch guys like Alistair Overeem, Brock Lesnar, Mark Hunt and think if they can use them, I feel like a pussy wearing boxing gloves now. If we want respect from mma fighters and the fans, Muay Thai fighters have to show we are just as tough as they are, we are no longer playing tag for points, now we are going to play a game called knocked out. More from Parr in the complete article. What do you say Bloody Elbow readers - is this an idea that interests you? FC: Has this same rule set has been used before? JWP: I have seen a few K-1 and Muay Thai fights on youtube [in a cage], but no MMA gloves. I believe with the small gloves we are just about to change the game forever. FC: How do you think it will change things during the fight? JWP: No one can be lazy, you will need new foot work to spring in and out with attacks, combos are going to have to be explosive as you might get caught standing in the pocket too long. If you're a smart fighter, you will get the kicking and knee strikes as your main weapons to keep your opponent at bay. Grappling with open gloves will open the door to good grapplers, you can hold the head and arms a lot easier and make it easier to move the guard to deliver elbows. Because you're not worried about being taken down people are going to have more confidence when striking. FC: So how are you preparing differently than you normally would? JWP: We are still 11 weeks away, right now I am working on getting my fitness up and keeping the eye in. I have started hitting the pads with the little gloves to get an idea of what it feels like. My friend has a cage so I will be working a lot in there getting fimilier with the surroundings. Besides that just doing everything the same. FC: How do you respond to the criticism that this is not real Muay Thai? JWP: I was surprised there was a little bit of a backlash, but all good. I am not doing this for any other reason than for myself, if it takes off I am happy to keep promoting them, if it doesn't then at least I had a crack and have memories to show for it. I read somewhere that when you think of mma you think cage, but mma was a ring sport long before the cage come along. Since I put the poster on the net the feedback has been 95% positive, people are excited and there is a buzz about the sport again. FC: Do you have any concerns over fighter safety with these rules? JWP: On the night I will have 2 doctors and a paramedic so I hope to have my bases covered. There will be cuts and swelling, plus knock outs I guarantee, but that's the same reason I pay $45 every weekend when UFC is on. FC: Will the show be broadcast or streamed? JWP: At this stage I am just getting the show recorded to see what sort of package we can put together. Because it's such a new idea I think people want to see if it works first. Open to tv deals in the future, if Fox in the states wants to buy it for 900 million like UFC, then give them my email. FC: One last question, since you keep up on MMA and the UFC I am curious to know - what is your opinion on the quality of striking we currently see in MMA? Who do you see in the UFC that has particularly strong Muay Thai technique? JWP: Anderson Silva has amazing striking. GSP is also someone I respect, he has a great jab like a pro boxer. The foot work and hand combos by Frankie Edgar, the kicking skills of Ben Henderson, the punching power of Mark Hunt and Junior dos Santos. I could go on and on. So many of the UFC guys are my heroes and I get excited to hear when they are fighting.

Posted in: mma, muay, fc, thai, glove

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For years now, Muay Thai has been the stand-up style of choice amongst mixed martial artists. Fighters have taken the Thai style and built their striking games around it. Yet despite this crossover, we've yet to see any high level Muay Thai fighters make a truly successful transition to MMA. There are small exceptions - Cosmo Alexandre is 1-1 in Bellator, Rambaa Somdet is a Shooto champion - but for the most part, true Muay Thai world champions have not made a dedicated effort to switch to MMA. Until now. Orono Wor Petchpun, a highly decorated Thai veteran and former Lumpinee Stadium champion, has announced he will make the move to MMA. The Muay Thai fighter has been training MMA with the Evolve Fight Team in order to make his debut soon, possibly as part of a DARE MMA event. Unfortunately for Orono, those plans may be jeopardized by politics. Yesterday, the Thai government announced that they would be cracking down on MMA events, which are technically not legal in Thailand, but until now have been allowed to take place. With DARE and other organizations gaining momentum, the government has decided to no longer allow MMA in Thailand in order to maintain the popularity of Muay Thai. Let's hope these events do not get in the way of Orono's move, as I know I am not alone in wondering just how the Muay Thai great would do inside the cage. We had a chance to speak with Orono recently, and he shared some interesting thoughts on the difference between Muay Thai and MMA, what he thinks of the current state of MMA striking, and why he would win against Jose Aldo: BE: What led to you making the switch to MMA now? Orono: I've been watching my teammates on the Evolve Fight Team compete and it has sparked a desire to compete again. I have spent a lot of time studying the game of MMA and I believe that I know how to use my Muay Thai effectively in the cage. What training are you doing to make this move? I've been training in wrestling and submission grappling. I have also recently just picked up Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with the Gi. What will be the hardest adjustment for you in switching to MMA? The transitions are the trickiest parts of MMA. I want to be able to flow between striking, takedowns, and submissions. That being said, my style of MMA will most likely be similar to that of Anderson Silva's. What do you think of the level of Muay Thai we see in MMA today? MMA is a different game. Most fighters are generalists in striking, wrestling, and submissions. Some guys are specialists. The overall level of striking is quite low in MMA today, even at the highest levels of MMA. Please do not misunderstand what I am saying... MMA athletes are all world-class. It is just that they have to spread their training across so many different disciplines in order to be successful. Take a look at me. I am confident that I can stand with any MMA fighter in the world. However, I will be training very hard in wrestling and submissions on top of my Muay Thai. MMA is a different game and it requires a different technical IQ to succeed. But to answer your question, there is no MMA fighter today that could legitimately fight Muay Thai in Lumpinee Stadium in Thailand. How do you feel your skills would match up against UFC champion Jose Aldo? It depends on the sport! In MMA, he would kill me right now because he's is a world champion BJJ Black Belt and I am a beginner at MMA. Of course, if we fought in pure Muay Thai match, I have 100% confidence that he would not get past the 1st round with me. His Muay Thai is at a very basic level if you compare it to the level in Thailand. Will you be fighting at 145 pounds? No, I have decided to fight at 135 pounds. I can still make weight very easily. My body is in pristine condition. I have no injuries from my Muay Thai career and I don't drink or smoke. Additionally, as you know from my Muay Thai career, I have been genetically blessed with endless cardio. I have no problems doing 10 rounds x 5 minutes of MMA at 100% output. I just did it the other day for fun at the Fighters Program at Evolve. As one of the few Thai fighters to go into MMA, do you feel pressure to represent Muay Thai? Of course. I want to make Thailand proud. I want to show the world the real art of Muay Thai. I want to make my family proud. I want to make my students proud. I want to bring more glory to my home, Evolve MMA. I want to show gratitude to my boss, Chatri, for his kindness. As you can see, I am very driven to become an MMA champion. You were the It's Showtime champion, but have not defended the belt in 2 years. What happened? Politics as usual. I want to fight as often as possible, but promoters and managers all have different agendas. Even right now I am willing to fight anyone in the world at Muay Thai. What are your goals for the rest of your career? I want to become an MMA champion. I believe that I have the athleticism to make the transition. And more importantly, I have all the resources here at Evolve MMA to learn from our world champions in Muay Thai, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Wrestling, and MMA. You will see the new Orono this year!

Posted in: mma, champion, muay, thai, muay thai

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Well, that's just spiffy. In an article on Fighters Only, they are reporting that the Thai government has banned MMA as "too brutal" and "damaging the image" of the nation's martial art. The Thai sports ministry ruled this week that MMA is "too brutal" and it is henceforth prohibited to stage MMA events in the South-East Asian country.Ministers said that mixed martial arts is "causing erosion" to the sport of Muay Thai and "damaging the image" of Thailand’s native martial art. However, there are those in the fledgling Thai MMA industry who think that the government may have been pressured or swayed by the Muay Thai industry. In fairness, the first commenter on FO asks for sources, as he didn't find any, and quite frankly, the only thing I'm finding when I search for it are other blog and MMA news sites reporting on this. If this is real and not an early April Fool's Day joke, then this would be a huge blow to the fledgling DARE and ONE FC organizations. Thailand is a country that loves itself some combat sport and quite frankly, Thai boxing is an integral component in MMA, and to have MMA banned in the home country of one of the chief martial arts would be discouraging to say the least. Assuming this is real, it'd be fairly ironic that a country that allows actual cock-fighting would ban the human version of it. While I'm pointing out the differing morality's, this is a nation where kids of single-digit-age train and compete in Muay Thai, and much of the nation lives in abject poverty. We'll be keeping an eye on this story and will post updates when more information becomes available.

Posted in: mma, nation, art, thai, muay thai

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submitted by red1392 [link] [1 comment]

Posted in: mma, sport, thai, ban, government

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Saturday (March 31) is fight night in Singapore and the anticipation is already building ahead of a show which will be the biggest the country has ever witnessed. ONE Fighting Championship is gaining momentum at a remarkable rate and 7,000 tickets have already been sold and the online audience is expected to be measured in the hundreds of thousands. By the time the first bell sounds at ONE Fighting Championship 'War of the Lions' on Saturday the Singapore Indoor Stadium will be completely sold out and the decision to stream the entire show completely free of charge on YouTube means that the online audience will be enormous. The fighters have already started to arrive and today saw a series of open workouts hosted all over town. I attended the one at Evolve MMA which has no fewer than five of it's fighters on the card. Every time I visit this place I am absolutely blown away by the facilities which are on a par with a five star hotel and this was no exception. Muay Thai legends like Attachai Fairtex and Orono Wor Petchpun were doing the pad holding as Zorobabel Moreira, Eddie Ng, Fabricio Monteiro, Yodsanan Sityodtong and Nicole Chua were put through their paces alongside other fighters including Mitch Chilson, Brian Choi, Leandro Issa, Shinya Aoki and Rafael Dos Anjos. Coaches Chatri Sityodtong and Heath Sims kept a careful eye on proceedings and the latter will have been watching out for his Team Quest student Richie Whitson who has also been preparing for his ONE FC fight at Evolve MMA. Here, in pictures, is this afternoon's session: Nicole Chua works with former Lumpini Champion Orono Wor Petchpun. Chua is Singapore's first ever female mixed martial artist and the 50 or so photographers and journalists in attendance were much more interested in her than in any of the male fighters. She is a former Muay Thai fighter who started training MMA fairly recently and will be up against 1-0 Indian Jeet Toshi on Saturday. Interestingly enough Orono is also rumored to be training MMA and hoping to make his competitive debut later this year. Eddie Ng works on his kicking with another former Lumlpinee champion, Attachai Fairtex, who was two time fighter of the year in Thailand. Ng, from Hong Kong, is one of the rising stars of Asian MMA and is also becoming very well known in Singapore and has attracted a lot of media interest. He is best known for his BJJ but will be up against Malaysian Muay Thai champion Jian Kai Chee so is probably looking to get some last minute stand up practice in. Yodsanan Sityodtong is 37 years old but still fights at the same weight he won his first title at aged 22. He has never smoked or drank alcohol and trains every day regardless of whether he has a fight booked or not. The former WBA Super Featherweight world champion is taking on Jian Long Yun who is much more experienced in MMA. It will be a real test for the 'Thai Tyson' who has 47 KOs in his boxing career but he has a reputation for working tirelessly in training and three days out from fight night is only a couple of kgs away from his target weight. Zorobabel Moreira is a man who probably wishes he was only a couple kgs away from his target weight. He is 6"3' and cuts something like 10 kgs over a period of weeks to get down to the lightweight limit. He is also one of the nicest guys you will ever meet and showed no signs of ill temper despite undergoing a potentially grueling weight cut. Zoro is another fighter who is making waves in Asian MMA and appeared on ESPN's Sports Centre last night, along with Evolve MMA owner Chatri Sityodtong, to discuss his forthcoming fight with Felipe Enomoto. This match up will be the main event and is the biggest fight of Moreira's career by far. He is a BJJ world champion who was named number seven in a list of the top lightweight prospects in the world earlier this year and he says that his weight cut is going smoothly and he will be within the lightweight limit at Friday's weigh in. TUF veteran Richie Whitson is a member of Team Quest and is managed by Evolve MMA's wrestling coach Heath Sims who got him a contract with ONE FC. He has an 11-2 record and is looking to really make a name for himself fighting in Asia. The lightweight division is the most competitive in ONE FC and all three events so far have been headlined by 155 lbs fighters. Whitson believes there are some big fights out there for him but first he will have to get past Danny Van Bergen this Saturday. Whitson, who is surprisingly small for a lightweight, told me that he thinks Van Bergen's Sherdog record is incomplete and that the Dutchman has closer to 25 wins. Two of the better lightweights in the world work on their clinching under the watchful eye of a team of Thai trainers. Both have huge fights coming up, Shinya Aoki is preparing for his rematch with Eddie Alvarez at Bellator 66 next month while Rafael Dos Anjos is taking on Kamal Shalorus at UFC on Fuel 3 in May. With Aoki, Dos Anjos, Moreira, Ng and Whitson all training together Evolve MMA probably has a better collection of high caliber lightweights than any other camp in the world right now. ONE FC is being streamed live on YouTube completely free of charge on Saturday. See above for times or click here to visit the official YouTube channel. www.twitter.com/jamesgoyder

Posted in: fight, mma, fighter, champion, thai

Read the full article at MMA Mania

Welcome back to my online diary documenting my very amateur experience training in Muay Thai. If you missed the previous entries on Bloody Elbow, read them here. Tradition. It's one of the things that first drew me into Muay Thai. As I watched grainy Muay Thai fights, I was fascinated by the ritual of it all - the headpieces, the armbands, the music, the bowing... You could see this rich culture just dripping from the pores of every Muay Thai fighter, and that idea of heritage, culture, ritual really spoke to me. It's one of the things that made me watch more, and eventually take it up myself. Now, as I train more Muay Thai, I am curious - how much value should we put on the old traditions in Muay Thai (or any martial art for that matter)? And how much value do gyms put on it? I ask because, in the more MMA-centric world of martial arts training here in the US, I don't always see that same level of tradition. From the outside, I still see it in some martial arts (jiu jitsu especially), but in Muay Thai in the US? Not so much. On a professional level, how many MMA fighters trained heavily in Muay Thai come out to the ring wearing a mong kon? How many do a wai khru? It's not many. And I guess I wonder - does this matter? And are using these rituals and traditions even appropriate? After all, in an MMA fight, you're not, strictly speaking, practicing Muay Thai. Yet I like the tradition, and I miss seeing it sometimes. Personally, I value this tradition, and I try to bring just a bit of it to my own training. Before each session, we all say a prayer with our instructor, and I also add just a small sort of psedo-wai khru myself, more to get my mind focused on the training than anything else. But I am alone in that, and, admittedly, sometimes I worry that my doing so is out of line or inappropriate. I try to step over the top rope to enter the ring (though a recent tightening of the ropes had made that much more difficult). And there are other Muay Thai traditions our gym keeps. But as Muay Thai has evolved into the MMA striking art of choice, and it has become more widespread in the US (which is, undeniably, a great thing), are we losing some of those traditions? And even if we are, is that just the inevitable forward march of progress? Every time I sit down to use these traditions to focus myself before class, these questions come into my head. Then I fall into the ritual, the questions roll away, and I am ready. I train Muay Thai under Andre Madiz at Conviction Martial Arts, 4430 N. Western Ave., Chicago, IL. www.convictionfitness.com. If you are in the Chicago area, come join us, and be sure to say hello.

Posted in: muay, art, thai, muay thai, tradition

Read the full article at Bloody Elbow

submitted by Tokestra420 [link] [3 comments]

Posted in: ko, head, muay, thai, tokestra

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submitted by AthiestBroker [link] [4 comments]

Posted in: fight, right, muay, thai, athiestbroker

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] Orono Wor Petchpun was one of the best Muay Thai fighters of his generation and was a Lumpini Champion, WMC Champion, It's Showtime Champion and WPMF Champion. He holds wins over Damien Alamos, Singdam Kiatmoo 9, Saenchai Sor Kingstar, Buakaw Por Pramuk and Yodsaenklai Fairtex but has not fought since 2010. Orono is now at Evolve MMA in Singapore where he is part of a team of Thai trainers which also includes Namsaknoi Yudthagarngamtorn, Anuwat Kaewsamrit, Attachai Fairtex and Yodsanan Sityodtong. He also works as a stand up coach for a number of top mixed martial artists like Shinya Aoki, Zorobabel Moreira and Eddie Ng and recently decided that he too wanted to compete in MMA. Orono is only 33 years old and has had just 150 Muay Thai fights in his career which is relatively few for a Thai fighter. He believes he still has plenty more to offer as a fighter and could be a force to be reckoned with at 145 lbs. Read More...

Posted in: mma, fighter, champion, thai, orono

Read the full article at Middle Easy

When people talk about Thais getting involved in the sport of mixed martial arts (MMA), they are normally interested in seeing famous former Muay Thai fighters start to learn wrestling and the ground game. There is also a new generation of educated young Thai men who are getting into the sport not for the payday, but because they are passionate about it. One of them is 23 year-old Shannon Wiratchai, a university graduate who made his professional debut at DARE Championship 2/12 last year. He has already won titles as an amateur and will be fighting this weekend with a spot in the DARE featherweight tournament semifinals at stake. There is a significant amount of prize money on offer to the tournament winner but there will also be plenty of pride at stake at the Insomnia Night Club on March 17 because Wiratchai is up against the brother of DK Panjabutra, the man he beat to book his spot in the quarterfinals. Tondamrong Panjabutra has a black belt in Judo and will be looking to gain a bit of vengeance for his brother who was on the receiving end of a one sided three round beatdown from Wiratchai. It is a contest which could get pretty personal but Wiratchai says he has respect for his opponent's ability. "Tondamrong's last fight was impressive and he showed a lot of ground fighting skill. Although he is not a famous Judoka in Thailand that fight showed that he is a lot better in no gi and MMA. It will definitely be about revenge because I beat his brother and he also beat a good friend of mine in an amateur match but afterwards I am sure we will be friends." Wiratchai works a freelance English teacher and translator but is focusing more on training MMA. One of the obstacles he has to overcome is opposition from his family who are concerned he might get hurt, something which prevents many young Thai men from competing in MMA, but he says despite some reluctance they remain supportive. He has been training regularly since his last fight at a variety of camps in Bangkok and Phuket but is still frustrated by how much he feels he has to learn. "I have been training all the time since my last fight but because I'm very new in MMA, my training schedule still not good enough and I still not satisfied with my progress. I train in many camps such as Phuket Top Team, 13 Coins, Q23, Jitti Gym and TUFF Camp and also my own BurnShell Team in Bangkok. I am still not satisfied with my progress but I think I have improve a lot because of a lot of training, this fight should show whether I am right or not." Thailand is an interesting market for MMA. Combat sports such as Muay Thai are very popular here and in excess of 7,000 fans will squeeze into Lumpini Stadium to see the sport's stars o the potential for growth is there but Muay Thai is so well established that is it impossible for MMA to even attempt to compete with it. DARE Championship was only formed last year but has already carved out a niche and gained a real cult following in Bangkok. While the crowd consists of a lot of foreigners there are also plenty of Thais, many of whom have come to cheer on their friends. Wiratchai says that a lot of people are starting to follow his career and he can see the sport of MMA growing and is happy to be a part of that growth. "I can feel that MMA is growing up in Bangkok and also Thailand. A lot of Thai fighers are aware of it and DARE is a great MMA event in Thailand, I always feel exciting every time when I step into the event even if I am not fighting but if I can contribute to making it more exciting it is even better, I want everybody to love my fights." DARE CHampionship 2/12 is taking place in Bangkok on March 17th and will be headlined by a welterweight match between Krysztof Hajtalowicz and Arnaud Lepont. For more information visit: www.darefightsports.com.

Posted in: fight, mma, lot, wiratchai, thai

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Pardoning the pun, Joe Schilling is a fighter that pulls no punches.  The current Interim WBC Muay Thai Light Heavyweight Champion, Schilling is one of the most honest fighters out there.  Following an interesting turn of events that had himself, and the current title holder Artem Levin fighting in unrelated bouts 72 hours apart, Schilling laid out his frustration for us during a recent interview. “You know, with this issue with the WBC; I’m supposed to be in the pinnacle of my career right now,” explained Schilling candidly to Fighters.com. “Whether you call it interim or not, I’m a world champion in what’s supposed to be one of the most important sanctioning bodies in the world.” The discussion also turned to how Muay Thai specialists like Duane Ludwig have found success transitioning into MMA.  Schilling has been in MMA camps before, recently even being shown on UFC Primetime: Diaz vs. Condit as a sparring partner of Nick Diaz‘s helping him prepare for his fight against Carlos Condit.  With this very recent experience in mind, Schilling addressed the possibility of whether he too would consider joining those ranks if it came down to it. “I’ve got to tell you that I’m getting a bit tired of jumping through hoops, working my tail off every time to put on shows and doing everything that’s asked of me and continuously getting slapped in the face,” said Schilling.  “That’s what I think about Artem Levin defending his title (against Chuck Sidibe).  It’s a slap in the face.  I find it pretty disrespectful.” “It does make me consider fighting in MMA.  At least in MMA, you’re getting paid to deal with this sh*t,” Schilling added. ” In Muay Thai, there’s a lot more injuries, a lot less money, a lot less recognition, and an equal amount of crap you’ve got to deal with.” However, Schilling was unwavering in his current goals as far as focusing on his kickboxing career. “We’ll see how this year plays out,” the 28-year old stated. ” I’m excited about the fights I have with Lion Fight.  If everything goes well and the sport continues to grow and move forward, you know, I’d be willing to stay in Muay Thai a little longer, but I’m definitely looking over to MMA right now.  It’s not looking too bad.” PHOTO CREDIT – Lion Fight Tweet

Posted in: fight, mma, muay, thai, schilling

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Phoenix Carnevale is one of my favorite people on the planet. She’s the kind of girl who’s often hanging out in the shadows of some of NYC’s finest Thai boxers as they step into the ring offering-up decades of wisdom she has acquired through memorizing every word of every Wu-Tang Clan song in existence. She’s also the kind of girl who’ll swiftly put a shin in your mouth if you ever disrespect any woman who steps in the ring. Phoenix modestly denies that she’s an exceptional Muay Thai practitioner from Phil Nurse’s army of Team WAT fighters, but if you get to know her, you’ll know better than to be mesmerized by (just) her smile. When she’s not doing ringside commentary for TaKe-On Muay Thai, she’s interviewing UFC fighters like Frankie Edgar before he steps in octagon to defend his lightweight title against Benson Henderson at UFC 144 in Japan. Take a closer look into how his striking has evolved since Kru Phil Nurse has made the adjustments that Dana White regarded as the finest boxing in the UFC (second to Anderson Silva) following Frankie Edgar’s long awaited knockout victory over Gray Maynard.

Posted in: edgar, frankie edgar, thai, nyc ’s, ringside commentary

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This should go without saying, but you should never mess with Matt Brown’s chewing tobacco.  You probably shouldn’t pour too much milk over his cereal either.  In fact, just leave Matt Brown alone to avoid getting seriously injured in the event you ever have to be in his vicinity while he’s preparing for a fight.  I’m sure that outside of training camp, he’s the kind of guy who’d make an outstanding companion on a fishing trip, perhaps he’d make a righteous wingman at the local watering hole, but that’s not the context in which we know Matt Brown, so we’ll continue to insist you remain cautious around him at all times. While most of you are still giddy about Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson’s headkick knockout of the night over Daniel Stittgen at UFC 143, Matt Brown remains unimpressed with the quality of his opponent and suggests that Wonderboy hasn't fought anyone noteworthy to even merit being in the UFC in this interview with MMAWeekly.com: “Name me one guy that he fought. I can tell you the guys I train with [have fought] Saenchai, Malaipet, and Joe Schilling; guys that are well known in the kickboxing/Muay Thai world, on a world level… I’m not too concerned with this guy’s kickboxing. I can go 100-0 beating a bunch of idiots, but that’s not my style.” He then goes on to say the only thing I agree with, about how Muay Thai beats Karate 9 times out of 10, but that’s really going to depend on how many youtube clips you base your observation on.  If you extrapolate the results, I’m willing to bet Muay Thai beats most other standing combat discipline 9.5 times out of 10 because many of them don’t train full contact.  Sort of an unfair comparison, but until we start seeing deadly Tae-Bo videos, Matt Brown’s statistics are all we have. [Source]

Posted in: time, guy, matt, ’m, thai

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] Following up on the results for Thai Boxe Mania, we've also got videos of the three top fights on the card. Artur Kyshenko vs. Roberto Cocco was a good fight with Kyshenko dominating the action. Yury Bessmertny's KO of Gago Drago is an early KO of the year candidate. Chingiz Allazov showed why he's one of the best up and comers in kickboxing with his dominant win over Erkan Varol Watch some Thai Boxe Mania...

Posted in: ko, thai, liverkickcom part, middleeasy networkdiv, erkan varol

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Two seasoned and calamitous old schoolers with over twenty years of cumulative experience will bask in the spotlight for Friday's UFC on FX show. Duane "Bang" Ludwig meets Josh "The Dentist" Neer in a co-main event pairing that virtually guarantees violence. By the time he made his Octagon debut at UFC 42 in 2003, Duane Ludwig (21-11) was one of the most exciting new prospects in MMA. For starters, "Bang" had already beaten renowned kickboxer "Malaipet" to win the ISKA World Muay Thai title and, while simultaneously masquerading in MMA as a Bas Rutten protege, accrued nine wins in his first eleven fights. Amongst that introductory streak, Ludwig became the UCC lightweight champion with a shocking first round knockout of a prime Jens Pulver, who had just successfully defended the UFC 155-pound strap against B.J. Penn, and forced Charles Bennett and Thomas Denny to cry uncle by way of his utterly trenchant striking. Ludwig would defeat Genki Sudo, the revered Japanese entertainer and grappling virtuoso, by decision in his UFC debut. In a classic striker vs. grappler match up, Sudo bloodied Ludwig's nose with ground-and-pound severely enough to warrant a pause in the action for the doctor to check on him, but then absorbed a barrage of Ludwig's ruthless Muay Thai when the fight was reset in the standing position. The outcome was one of the most hotly debated controversies in the early era of the sport, inspiring the implementation of the contemporary rule which specifies that the competitors will be restarted in the same position after the referee calls time for a foul and/or to consult with the ringside physician. Ludwig ended up bouncing back and forth between lightweight and welterweight and, because he was unable to level his ground game with his stand up, never made a huge splash in MMA. Barring the lofty expectations he created for himself, he still had a successful career and plugged away in the UFC, Strikeforce, K-1 and Sengoku, where he lost to the big kids on the block like Penn, Paul Daley, Tyson Griffin, Josh Thomson and Takanori Gomi. Most recently, his almost immediate shellacking of Jonathan Goulet at UFC Fight Night 3 was finally christened as the fastest knockout in Octagon history, and Ludwig's remolded his latest tour with two straight decision wins (Nick Osipczak, Amir Sadollah) after opening with two losses (Jim Miller, Darren Elkins). Josh Neer (32-10-1) has a well earned reputation for being a gritty, hard-nosed scrapper. The longtime Pat Miletich product has an unconfirmed yet relatively insane amateur record (87-1) in Iowa and is rumored to have taken on multiple adversaries on the same night. After turning pro and ratcheting two TKO wins, Neer would encounter future training partners and UFC lightweights in Joe Jordan (draw) and Spencer Fisher (split-decision loss). His all-out war with "The King" is probably one of the best back and forth dogfights that you've never had the pleasure to witness. "The Dentist" bounced back from his first defeat in style with ten crushing victories, finishing all but one with six TKOs and three submissions (armbar, triangle, strike-submission). This awarded a single-stint in the UFC where he was choked out by avid grappler Drew Fickett. Neer kept his nose to the grindstone and impressively fitted Forrest Petz with a triangle but was tapped by Nick Thompson, both of whom were eventual UFCers. Neer put himself on the map as a "TUF Killer" when he re-emerged in the Octagon and bested Melvin Guillard (triangle choke) and Joe Stevenson. Finally recognized as a genuine lightweight force, Neer would tackle a litany of top level opposition with mixed results: T.J. Waldburger, Din Thomas, Mac Danzig, and Keith Wisniewski in his latest (all wins); Nick and Nate Diaz, Kurt Pellegrino, Gleison Tibau, and Eddie Alvarez (losses). Gifs and analysis in the full entry. SBN coverage of UFC on FX Early on, Neer was heralded for his boxing and it's still his best asset. He doesn't necessarily have the cleanest style according to traditional boxing standards, but this is MMA and few do, and Neer's long and aggressive punches are quite effective. His inherent toughness shines through everywhere, as Neer is the type who compensates for imperfect fundamentals with raw tenacity and unshakable perseverance. He's got enough experience now to be supremely confident in his ability to throw down with the best of 'em. I was most endeared by Neer's brilliant use of short, slashing elbows from the clinch in his last entry against Wisniewski, which cracked open a gash on his forehead. Standing Thai elbows are, in my opinion, a vastly under-utilized weapon that we'll see more of in the future, especially in the clinch where the emphasis on ideal hand and arm position can yield significant advantages. Neer is an average wrestler and his submission acumen has been hard to read; commonplace or even a weakness at times, shockingly virtuous in others. Let it be known that any analysis regarding "Bang" Ludwig is hereby rendered vacuous without the epic gif to the right. I put this one together myself because the maelstrom of this glorious devastation was one of the initial memories that MMA burned into my forever, consummated by Ludwig styling the Karate Kid crane stance. The massacre took place against Shad Smith and his equally fashionable wardrobe choice of Vans skate shoes. Pre-unified rules MMA nostalgia aside, the beatdown is an undeniable testament to the apex level of Ludwig's stand up prowess. That is a perfect mesh of extraordinary technique and combat-adapted ferocity. It was enjoyable to see that Ludwig still had it more than a decade later in his thorough disassembly of Sadollah. Given, the more inexperienced kickboxer presented a favorable match up, yet it cemented that anyone who stands with Ludwig is in for a long night. He's not impossible to catch on the feet and Neer is a savvy striker with a long reach, but few can match Ludwig's Muay Thai finesse. Note the exemplary mechanics of his fluid head movement, excellent timing and pinpoint accuracy. Common sense asserts that Neer would be wise to force a grappling match. Ludwig's sole focus after dedicating himself to MMA was to reinforce his wrestling and BJJ, and he became quite adept with sprawling and employing a defensive guard to create scrambling opportunities. Since he's not a pure wrestler, Neer uses his intelligence to bore his way into the clinch where he grinds away with tight-range strikes to set up throws and trips. It will be interesting because he prefers to lead with the Thai plum and has a little height and length on Ludwig despite the vastly inferior Thai credentials. The betting lines for this fight give Ludwig a tiny push and have Neer about even. From a pure skill standpoint, Ludwig is comparable to Neer everywhere except in striking, where he's just too polished to match. The key x-factors are Neer's ability to break people with his unwavering willpower and Ludwig's conditioning in later rounds. Neer can wrap things up quickly with his hands and, with a high pace and preferably from close-quarters, will throw everything but the kitchen sink at Ludwig, including submission and takedown attempts from the clinch. With only career TKO loss, he's also difficult to finish and walks through punches without batting an eye. All things considered, I like Ludwig here, who I expect to "out-box the brawler" and either catch Neer early with an accumulation of strikes or survive a third-round surge in a decision. My Prediction: Duane Ludwig by decision. Neer vs. Wisniewski and Ludwig vs. Sadollah gifs via Zombie Prophet of IronForgesIron.com Poll Duane Ludwig vs. Josh Neer Duane Ludwig Josh Neer   8 votes | Results

Posted in: ufc, mma, neer, thai, ludwig

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Light heavyweight Joe Schilling has joined on with Vegas-area Muay Thai company Lion Fight Promotions to compete in the first of what is expected to be many fights under the organization’s banner. Schilling holds a 12-1 overall record with ten knockouts and currently holds a WBC interim championship. Schilling’s first fight will come on February 25 against polished Canadian Simon Marcus (42-2-2) at Battle in the Desert 5 which will go down live at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino. “Lion Fight Promotions is taking the bull by the horns as far as bringing the sport of Muay Thai to mainstream America and making it a major sport here, so it’s the perfect home for me because Muay Thai is my life and I want to fight the best fighters out there on a big stage,” explained the once-beaten Schilling in a press release to media. Schilling fought this past August for Lion Fight as well, knocking out Brandon Banda with a knee only a few minutes into the opening round of their bout. According to Schilling, fans should expect a similar result against the vastly more-experienced Marcus. “I’m not going to outpoint him. I’m going to knock him out. That’s what I do.” PHOTO CREDIT – LIONFIGHTPROMOTIONS Tweet

Posted in: fight, thai, muay thai, schilling, lion

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Welcome back to my online diary documenting my very amateur experience training in Muay Thai. If you missed the first entry on Bloody Elbow, read it here. One year ago, I started down an exciting path of personal growth - I began training in Muay Thai. Now, with year one down, I thought it was a good chance to step back, share some of my experiences, and look forward to the coming year. First up, and I can not stress this enough, if you have ever considered exploring any martial arts training, do it. Training helps me feel considerably better, both physically and mentally, and it has added so much to my appreciation of MMA and kickboxing. There is just something about trying these techniques out yourself that really helps you see the details in every fight. Really, dive in and give it a shot. As for that extra appreciation for MMA, the Muay Thai training has definitely opened my eyes to a lot of MMA striking. It's helped me to see the good as well as the bad. And there are plenty of examples of both. But one thing that sticks out is the way MMA striking has not always kept up with the advances in other disciplines. Think of wrestling, where fighters like Georges St. Pierre have demonstrated how to take the best wrestling has to offer, adapt that for MMA, and use it to such great successes. You don't see as much of that with Muay Thai, and that's a shame. I'd like to see more fighters utilizing Muay Thai elbows and knees, or really committing to leg kicks. Now, the counter argument here is obvious - in Muay Thai, fighters don't have to worry about being taken down (well, being taken down and having the fight continue - contrary to some beliefs, takedowns are a part of Muay Thai, it's just that the fight does not continue on the mat). And that is true. But you could also say that in wrestling, a wrestler doesn't have to worry about being punched, or in grappling matches, there's no fear of the ground and pound. Both of those disciplines have been adapted to MMA, with changes made to protect against this new element. Muay Thai and other striking arts are making progress in this area, but are not there just yet, though Lyoto Machida showed that a specific striking style can have great success in MMA. We'll see what the future holds for Muay Thai and other specific striking arts in our sport. Enough pontificating. I'll wrap it up with a few personal goals for year two and my continuing work in Muay Thai: Improve my cardio. This speaks for itself. Get consistency on my kicks. I can land a solid kick that is vastly improved from where I was a few months ago, but after about 10 in a row, they start to get weaker. Need to build those up. Also need to improve the left leg overall. Keep the jab stiff. I use it as a pawing punch too often - need to send it out with power and take advantage of my height and reach. Get new gear. Specifically headgear, new gloves and wraps, Muay Thai shorts, and a better mouthpiece and bag. Any suggestions on those? And if any companies out there have equipment they are itching to get reviewed, get in touch. Thanks for reading, and happy new year to all.

Posted in: mma, year, muay, thai, muay thai

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] When Buakaw Por. Pramuk fights, the world watches. Thai Fight 2011 was no different. Buakaw made it all the way to the Thai Fight 2011 70kg Finals where he squared off with Frank Giorgi. On paper, this fight was all Buakaw, but if you don't know how this fight turns out we aren't about to spoil it for you. Go ahead and watch it below. Watch the Entire Fight...

Posted in: fight, thai, liverkickcom part, middleeasy networkdiv, buakaw

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This week marked a victory for fight-fans everywhere after it was revealed the Friday Night Fights Muay Thai promotion would be holding a “full rules” event in New York next month, a move perhaps providing MMA enthusiasts with some hope as well given the allowance of elbows/knees rather than producing a watered-down version of the sport without either. The January 20 event will mark the first “full rules” Muay Thai show in the State and features a headlining clash between Alex Berrios and Ben Case. “Full rules” is another way of saying the night’s bouts will involve traditional Muay Thai rules rather than those seen in kickboxing. “While New York may have not been the first to permit full rules in the region, regardless of what style of fighting we are talking about – New York is a historic place for the fight game – so, when the chance to produce the first full rules Muay Thai match presented itself, there was really no choice but to seize the opportunity with both hands and make it happen,” said promotional President Justin Blair in a statement to Muay Thai Authority. “It’s not to take anything away from guys who have fought in NYC under modified rules – until now it’s all we’ve had,” added Case before eloquently explaining, “But the legality of elbows shouldn’t be looked at as a bonus, it should be the standard. It makes the fight so much more dynamic. Allowing elbows into the arsenal isn’t just side note; it fundamentally changes the choreography of the fight. In other words, it’s not like the fight is the same, just there will be some elbows in there on top of the same kicks and knees and punches; putting elbows in the mix changes the pace of the fight and the ways you can use the other weapons. It’s exponential, not additional.” For Muay Thai lovers everywhere, especially in the Big Apple, the news couldn’t come at a better time and is undoubtedly an excellent way to kick off 2012…literally. Tweet

Posted in: fight, muay, thai, york, rule

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MSN Sports yesterday named the top 'head coaches' of 2011 and the normal suspects were all there, Man Utd manager Alex Ferguson, Real Madrid head honcho Jose Mourinho, Barcelona's Pep Guardiola and a couple of names which will be more familiar to American fans in Rick Carlisle of the Dallas Mavericks and Scott Brooks of the Oklahoma City Thunder. There were also a couple of surprises as the Asian website named two mixed martial arts masterminds, Greg Jackson and Chatri Sityodtong. Seeing two names from the MMA world on such a prestigious list goes to show just how rapidly the sport is developing as well as the extent to which tactics and preparation are increasingly recognized as being essential to a fighter's success. Fighters from Jackson's Submission Fighting enjoyed a stellar year in 2011. Under Jackson's astute guidance Donald Cerrone cemented his status as a top lightweight contender with four straight wins, Carlos Condit moved into title contention with a knock out of the night over Dong Hyun Kim and Jon Jones (below) became UFC middleweight champion while Georges St Pierre retained his welterweight strap. The Evolve MMA team enjoyed similar success albeit on the other side of the world, most notably at ONE Fighting Championship which is increasingly regarded as the Asian equivalent of the UFC. DREAM Lightweight Champion Shinya Aoki posted three wins out of three, all with neck cranks while up and coming fighters like Eddie Ng, Zorobabel Moreira and Leandro Issa all contributed to a 90% plus win rate. Evolve MMA fighters won five out of six fights at ONE Fighting Championship and four out of four at DARE Championship. Rafael Dos Anjos also made a triumphant return to the UFC and showed off some new found Muay Thai skills to stop Georges Sotiropolous on his comeback, thanking Chatri specifically in his post fight interview. TUF featherweight winner Diego Brandao is another Jackson protegee and now that he has secured a UFC contract by winning the show big things are expected of him in 2012. There is also much expected of former WBA Super Featherweight champion Yodsanan Sityodtong (below) who Chatri took to Evolve MMA from Thailand and has turned from a world class boxer into an explosive and exciting mixed martial artist. It is interesting to note that neither Chatri nor Jackson have any professional MMA experience. Jackson founded his own martial art, Gaidojutsu, which combines rudimentary techniques from wrestling and kickboxing with basic Judo locks and then added techniques from other styles such as Wrestling, Grappling, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Kickboxing. Chatri is an Thai entrepreneur and businessman who has an MBA from Harvard. He is also a blue belt under Renzo Gracie and a veteran of 20+ Muay Thai fights who trained under the legendary Kru Yodtong Senanan who appointed him as one of of only four students in the world designated as conservators of Sityodtong Muay Thai. Having founded a highly successful martial arts school in Singapore, which is home to a number of Thai trainers from the Sityodtong camp, Chatri has become an expert MMA tactician who spends hours studying footage on opponents and developing effective fight strategies. The Singapore based camp is eight years younger than Jackson's Submission Fighting and does not have as many established champions yet but the next few years will be interesting as Asian MMA continues to develop and some of the up and coming young Evolve MMA fighters start to realize their potential and showcase their abilities on high profile shows like ONE FC. All the other head coaches on the MSN list are in charge of teams and face the challenge of organizing a large group of individuals. In MMA, unlike basketball or soccer, competitors are completely alone once they step inside the cage but it is good to see a mainstream sporting website recognizing the work which goes on behind the scenes and the success that top tacticians Chatri Sityodtong and Greg Jackson have enjoyed in 2011.

Posted in: mma, jackson, thai, chatri, sityodtong

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While Junie Browning hasn't been relevant to MMA for five TUFs now, that doesn't mean his perpetual life problems can't still rack up pageviews for the fight blogamasphere. Last we heard from Junie was the 2009 MMA Awards with the video you see above poking fun of the time he tried to kill himself. He ended up in the hospital, where he bugged out and attacked several staff while screaming "Do you know who I am? I will kill you and rape your family." Now in an international remix of the first incident, Junie busted out of a Thai hospital following a barfight and is now a man on the run: Police have mounted a Phuket-wide hunt for an American man who started one brawl in a Phuket bar then continued it in the emergency treatment ward at Patong Hospital.Authorities at Phuket International Airport are on the alert for the man.Police have named the suspect they wish to interview as Allen Browning, 26, a Thai boxer who fled into the night on Sunday in Patong and has not bee seen since.Earlier in the night, Mr Browning allegedly was seen beating up on an expat woman in a bar in Patak Road, Karon. He also lashed out at Thai female bar staff when they tried to intervene, police said. This is all slightly different from the story Junie tells: Wow, what a helluva weekend?!.. Some [expletive] named Sie Menzies and about 10 of his friends started a fight with me, I guess just to test a “UFC fighter guy” at his [expletive] little bar in Karan Thailand. Had a beer bottle and glass mug shattered on my head then to make everything better, stabbed severely by some crazy Thai [expletive]. On a positive note I managed to break a few orbital bones, at least a couple jaws and some unconscious bodies laying on the ground before I blacked out from loss of blood and apparently had to be resuscitated in the ambulance. So, how was your weekend? As if that wasn't bad enough, Junie is also claiming that he's now being chased by the Thai mafia: Apparently in the news story I fled the scene in the hospital before the police got there. It’s obvious by this picture that the police were already there. It wasn’t until hours later my girlfriends and my phone were flooded with phone calls saying that the Thai mafia were headed to the hospital to kill me did we leave. We understood that it is a very corrupt place so we had to flee and get in contact with the US Embassy. Remember way back in the day when War Machine used to talk lovingly about the idea of moving to Southeast Asia where men can be men and getting into fights never causes any problems? This is what happens when you try that out in real life.

Posted in: thai, police, bar, junie, thai mafia

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In a follow-up to the Junie Browning Thailand manhunt story, Junie has posted an update on his Facebook page claiming that the Thai mafia is after him, not the police. (The post isn’t showing on Facebook for me probably cause I’m not FB friends with him, so here’s the transcript via BE) Im officially the biggest American patriot there is now. These other primitive countries are all about money, mafia and corrupt law enforcement. Regardless what you believe I never touched a female in theses events that occurred and my girlfriend was there from start to finish to vouch. Hitting Thai women was an excuse for them to demonize me and get some baht out of me. You all don’t understand with my name, people will use it against me. I acted like an idiot on a reality show for publicity so they are using that against me. Im sorry and I care about people more than you thank and I appreciate all the support from the intelligent people that understand that these primitive countries are trying to kill me ( Literally ) . I need help BAD! please call the US Embassy in my regards. Thank you very much everyone. Apparently in the news story I fled the scene in the hospital before the police got there. It’s obvious by this picture that the police were already there. It wasn’t until hours later my girlfriends and my phone were flooded with phone calls saying that the Thai mafia were headed to the hospital to kill me did we leave. We understood that it is a very corrupt place so we had to flee and get in contact with the US Embassy. Funny how cropping a photo changes the whole story. Geez, kinda sounds like the plot of a bad Van Damme movie or something, doesn’t it? I’ve always found it difficult to have any sympathy for Browning, but if his version of the story is true, I sure hope he’s able to find refuge with the embassy and get the heck out of town before someone with bad intentions gets a hold of him.

Posted in: people, story, thai, mafia, thai mafia

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I try my hardest everyday to 'like' Junie Browning. Every day he doesn’t end up in the news is another day I feel closer to that goal. It’s been a long time, almost long enough for me to feel comfortable enough to hit the “Like” button on his fan page, but then he drops this in his Facebook status and we’re right back to where we started: “Wow what a helluva weekend, Some (expletive) named Sie Menzies and about 10 of his friends started a fight with me. I guess just to test a ‘UFC fighter guy’ at his (expletive) little bar in Karon Thailand. Had a beer bottle and glass mug shattered on my head, then to make everything better, stabbed severely by some crazy Thai (expletive). On a positive note, I managed to break a few orbital bones, at least a couple jaws, and some unconscious bodies laying on the ground before I blacked out from loss of blood and apparently had to be resuscitated in the ambulance. So, how was your weekend?" According to police reports, the former TUF hopeful was seen beating up on a woman at the bar. He also allegedly attacked Thai female staff when they tried to stop him. Tourists who tried to contain Junie apparently also caught punches & kicks, but that’s only how the drama started. It continued in the hospital where Junie allegedly resumed fighting with the same people in the emergency ward of Patong Hospital in Phuket, Thailand. I assure you, this is not the same story we posted 2 years ago of when Junie Browning was attacking nurses at the hospital, an incident which ultimately cost him his job with the UFC. He even apologized for it. This is an entirely new tale in the ‘chronicles of Junie Browning’. Currently, Junie is on the run from police in what has turned into a citywide manhunt in Phuket – a place tourists and Muay Thai fighters from around the world come to enjoy year-round. Not sure what the ramifications of this incident will be just yet, but we’ll keep you posted as details arise. [Source]

Posted in: thailand, thai, expletive, hospital, junie

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Here's a trailer for the upcoming documentary Buffalo Girls, which takes a look into the Thai world of kiddie kickboxing. Over 30,000 kids take part in the scene, and this documentary follows two 8 year olds around. One has 23 fights already, and we're talking about serious full throttle fights involving arenas full of old thai dudes smoking and gambling, not that wussy crap that caused so much outrage in Australia earlier this year.

Posted in: year, thai, kiddie kickboxing, thai world, wussy crap

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Unless you’re a Green Beret or Peace Corps volunteer, the prospect of extended travel overseas is likely a daunting undertaking – especially in regards to countries that don’t speak your native tongue.  But if you’re an MMA enthusiast kicking around the idea of studying Muay Thai or jiu-jitsu at its source, then author William Stevens, and his book the “MMA Travel Guide”, has got you covered.  Drawing on his own experiences visiting Thailand and Brazil for the past decade, Stevens (himself a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt under Louis Vintaloro and Royler Gracie) lays it all out in concise, Fodor’s Handbook-esque fashion.  Here’s a breakdown of the book’s finer points: -Geography – You may not pass any advanced geography exams after reading the book, but the MMA Travel Guide certainly lays out where in Thailand you’d go for training at the top Muay Thai camps, and where you’d find the jiu-jitsu academies in Brazil.  There’s a decent breakdown of Bangkok, which, for international travelers, will likely be the point of entry into the country, as well as descriptions pertaining to the more exotic Phuket and Chiang Mai locales.  Having visited Thailand myself, I can say Stevens nails it – especially the part about not renting motorbikes.  (I saw tons of tourists absolutely mangled on those things, and that was before I even left the airport.)  For Brazil, the travel tips extend only as far as the city of Rio de Janeiro, but there’s so much jiu-jitsu in Rio, you’d have to really want to visit the country’s other grappling spots (Sao Paolo, Minas Gerais, etc.) to be inclined to check them out. -Local Customs – Did you know pointing your feet at someone or tousling their hair can offend a Thai?  Stevens has that little tidbit in there, as well as others, which should hopefully keep you from getting your butt kicked by locals who are sick of your post-boozing nonsense.  There isn’t much by way of insight into local customs re: Brazil, suffice to say that acai is loved by one and all.  Still, what more do you need to know in Brazil? -Language – Stevens lays out a ton of important words and phrases in Portuguese that would be essential to any jiu-jitsu tourist (or just plain tourist who wants to avoid having some stranger put their knee on his belly).  But the Thai that’s laid out in the MMA Travel Guide is fantastic.  Words and phrases are spelled out for Western pronunciation, and addresses are written out in Thai.  In other words, if you want to check out the Sasipapra Muay Thai Gym in Bangkok, all you need to do is hold up that page of the guide to a taxi driver and he’d be able to read where it is.  That’s very, very helpful. -The Nitty-Gritty of Training – For the section on Thailand, the facilities offered by each of the camps are laid out.  Also, the pros and cons of staying at a camp versus hotel are weighed, and Stevens even touches upon checking out live Muay Thai fights (a must for fight fans and aspiring fighters alike). For the jiu-jitsu practitioner trekking to South America, the MMA Travel Guide encourages all belt levels to make the trip.  Included is a description of what training is like at the Gracie Academy in Humaita, as well as necessary tips on diet, cardio and communication. If the MMA Travel Guide has any shortcomings, it’s that Stevens only writes about what he knows – Thailand and Brazil.  The way information on training in those countries is provided makes me wish the author would do the same for places like Holland, Japan, and even the United States.  But alas…  “My experience is really only with Brazil and Thailand, so I don’t really have any plans on other books,” said Stevens via email.  “Wrestling is the one martial art that really has been most dominant in MMA, but who really needs a travel guide to Ohio?  Seriously, I thought about doing a tour to visit the top MMA trainers in the USA, but running my two schools and trying to sell my book alongside has used up all my time.  Maybe in another life.” Oh well.  At least the MMA Travel Guide gives us the birthplaces of Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Check out the MMA Travel Guide on Amazon.com.

Posted in: mma, guide, steven, thai, travel

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] A busy weekend for fights means that fight videos soon follow. Everyone's favorite 70kg Muay Thai fighter and former K-1 World MAX Champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk was in action again, this time for Thai Fight. His opponent this weekend was Mickael Piscitello to see who moves into the Thai Fight Extreme Finals for 70kg. Seeing as though Kickboxing fans have been chomping at the bit for Buakaw Por. Pramuk to return to Kickboxing action and Thai Fight is winding down, let us know who you want to see Buakaw fight if he does indeed return to the Kickboxing realm from being treated like a god by Thai Fight. Read More and Watch the Video...

Posted in: fight, thai, thai fight, buakaw, por

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] With the formation of the Muay Thai premier league, shows starting to pop up in the U.S, and notable events happening almost every week in Europe, boxing in Thailand seems to have taken a backseat. Buakaw Por. Pramuk, Kem Sitsongpeenong, Sudsakorn Sor. Klinmee, Yodsanklai Fairtex etc... are the Thai fighters that get most of the attention because they frequently fight outside of the country. However they are nowhere near the best fighters in Thailand. I don't know if its because the best fighters are genetically smaller than "international level" fighters, or because people stereotype stadium boxing as a type of sameness, but for some reason or another Muay Thai in Thailand is viewed as something that is just... there, and nothing more for a lot of people. The best Thai boxers in the world are all 132 pound and under Thai's. I'm not bitter, just perplexed as to why the best fighters minus Saenchai aren't getting a fair shake, or even attention. 1. Saenchai Sinbimuaythai: It's impossible to not have Saenchai at #1. The guy has proven time and time again that he is the best stand up fighter on the planet. One week he'll go to another country at 140 pounds and dominate, 2 weeks later he'll get down to 127 and teach the hottest fighter in Thailand a boxing lesson. Vision, speed, balance, technique, he has it all. At 31 and 300 fights to his name you'd think the decline would have started by now, but if anything he's getting better and plans to fight for 4 or 5 more years. Next month he's scheduled to fight F16 Rajanont at the Lumpinee birthday show where he'll be giving up a full weight class to F16. Read More...

Posted in: fight, fighter, thailand, thai, thai boxers

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Viewed as the “art of eight-points”, Muay Thai is a brutal martial art featuring clinch-work and striking with knees, elbows, feet, and fists. The sport is generally associated with Southeast Asia and Brazil. Tweet

Posted in: muay, art, thai, muay thai, “ art

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Posted in: way, muay, strike, elbow, thai

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Muay Thai is called the art of eight limbs. For many kickboxers, it's just a clever turn of phrase. If your career is concentrated in Japan or Europe, it's likely you really practice the art of four limbs - hands and feet. Only rarely will knees come into the picture. Standing elbows are out of the question. To purists, K-1, the kickboxing brand most familiar to North American MMA fans, is barely Muay Thai kickboxing at all. "You're allowed to throw one knee at a time. There's pretty much no clinch in K-1 fighting," fighter Elaina Maxwell said. "In traditional Muay Thai, there's elbows, knees, and what most fans know as 'kickboxing' all combined together." Tonight at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, while many fans will be watching Dan Henderson fight Cung Le, Maxwell and some of the best strikers in North America will be letting all eight limbs go. Nevada is one of the few athletic commissions that allows professional Muay Thai fights in their purest form. It's not for the faint of heart. But promoter Scott Kent from Lion Fight Promotions thinks it's a level of violence Americans are ready for. "I think the time is right," Kent said. "With the explosion of the UFC and MMA across America, we have the advantage of promoting a sport that everybody in MMA already trains in. Because you have to in order to be a complete MMA fighter. So we are able to hack into our traditional Muay Thai audience, since the sport is already very popular in many parts of Asia, but also expand that audience because of the exposure of MMA." The show will stream live from The Joint at the Hard Rock on Go Fight Live. While many smaller shows like Kent's have gravitated towards HDNet, which features a rotating cast of North American based promotions, Lion Fights has taken a step into what could be the next big thing in content distribution - streaming pay per view. "I think it's a great way to bring our fights to a global audience," Kent said. "With their distribution, a lot of folks get a chance to see these fighters that wouldn't normally have the opportunity." Maxwell is one of the MMA crossover stars Kent is hoping will make a difference at the box office. Her record shows a blank kickboxing slate, but don't be fooled. Although she's never competed in a professional Muay Thai rules match, the San Francisco based fighter has lots of experience using all the tools of the trade. Maxwell is also one of the most successful American San Shou fighters of all time, combining punches, kicks, and wicked throws with devastating ease. The Cung Le protege won a gold medal in the Chinese sport in Macau in 2003 and is a dynamic striker. "We rocked the house in 2003 and 2005. Cung Le is the best San Shou coach that the United States has ever had...That was an awesome experience," Maxwell said. "I want to go back again, but the politics in traditional martial arts are not fun. And all I want to do is fight. Plus, it's hard to go from getting paid to fight, back to paying to fight. " Maxwell has turned her attention instead to mixed martial arts. She's lost her three highest profile bouts, Strikeforce fights with Gina Carano, Miesha Tate, and Shanya Baszler, but has won both of her bouts this year. Fans shouldn't read too much into her appearance in a kickboxing event. With Strikeforce on the verge of folding and the UFC remaining steadfast in a refusal to promote women's fights, the future for women in the sport seems bleak. But Maxwell is taking it all in stride. "I don't think women should be afraid. Sure, they're not going to be in the UFC unless they're holding the ring card," Maxwell said. "I don't think the women's sport is dying. There are more than a few organizations out there that will showcase MMA. I just wanted to stay busy. I love to fight and really wanted to test my standup game. "That's where I come from and I love it. One of the last times I actually fought a kickboxing match in Las Vegas it was at the Stardust," Maxwell said, referencing a Las Vegas hotel that was blown up in the name of progress in 2007. "So, that was awhile ago right? It should be fun." Lion Fights: Battle in the Desert 4 will be available live tomorrow night on Go Fight Live. The event is also available on demand for UFC fans who want to purchase the kickboxing event and watch it sometime after UFC 139 is complete. Elaina Maxwell would like to thank kickboxing coach Kirian Fitzgibbons, Dan Russell at Mainstreet Chiropractic, and Fight Chix.

Posted in: fight, mma, kickboxing, thai, maxwell

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[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] Historically ambitious stand up fighters have flocked to Thailand to learn at the hands of legends like Namsaknoi Yudthagarngamtorn and Anuwat Kaewsamrit but now an increasing number of renowned Muay Thai fighters are moving to Singapore. Evolve MMA is putting together a collection of trainers which is unprecedented in the history of Muay Thai and includes Orono Wor Petchpun, Attachai Fairtex, Lamnammoon Sor Sumalee, Kongtoranee Payakaroon and Muangfalek Kitvichian as well as Namsaknoi and Anuwat. These are all names which live on long after their owners have retired because they belong to the very best fighters in the most competitive stand up sport on the planet. Any fighter who wants to acquire world class stand up skils, be it for K-1, kickboxing, Muay Thai or even MMA would be well advised to come and learn from one of these Thai legends. The fighters currently at Evolve MMA include Shinya Aoki, Leandro Issa and Eddie Ng and with such a decorated team of trainers it is no wonder that their stand up skills are improving rapidly. You could not find a team of Muay Thai fighters, past or present, anywhere else in the world to match the one currently in place at Evolve MMA and there is not even a camp in Thailand which can boast so many high calibre trainers. Read More...

Posted in: mma, fighter, muay, trainer, thai

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In just two days, Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) will introduce its product to a considerably larger audience than usual, as UFC on Fox 1 will be the inaugural event held on the network television station. The promotion and the FOX network recently announced their collaboration to give sports fans a dose of mixed martial arts (MMA) on one of the premier sports channels. UFC on FOX 1 will be headlined by a heavyweight title fight between the top two heavyweights in the world today, as champion Cain Velasquez puts his strap on the line against number one contender Junior dos Santos. As most fight fans already know, the sport is made of thousands of fighters with different combinations of martial art backgrounds. A lot has changed from the early days of the sport, as it now appears each fighter is a hybrid of sorts, mixing several different disciplines to make a complete package. We've also seen a certain evolution. There used to be a day when jiu-jitsu, wrestling and boxing were the predominant disciplines. Now, though, we see arts like sambo, karate and even capoeira being used as often and effectively as any other.  Each art is unique and can be used to produce the desired result under the care of a skilled practitioner. I have gone into more detail with each discipline, including jiu-jitsu (here), wrestling (here), Muay Thai (here) and boxing (here). These are the most commonly seen martial arts, or the four that are most often put into practice in high profile match-ups. But other then the hardcore fans who watch with extreme passion and understanding, does everyone see the differences or subtle nuances in techniques that showcase each individual art? In case you don't, follow me after the jump and I'll explain. While we've already covered the boxing, grappling and wrestling skills of a few competitors from this upcoming fight card, it is important not to forget about the fourth discipline, which is really a mixture of two separate arts. That would be a blend of kickboxing and Muay Thai. The two have very close ties to one another and while they can be vastly different, they are often effective in the very same way. Further distancing itself from boxing, the disciplines of kickboxing and Muay Thai allow fighters to showcase their striking with more weapons at their disposal. If you think of boxing as two sticks of dynamite, than Muay Thai is a whole box full. Muay Thai focuses on utilizing all limbs of the body. Throwing punches is still a common trait with other striking disciplines and the difference is the encouragement of elbow, knee and foot strikes. Fighting in close quarters, speed and clinching are more attributes that Muay Thai enhances. While no fighter on the UFC on FOX card is considered much of a Muay Thai expert, there are a couple of fighters who have mixed in the fundamentals of the discipline into their striking arsenal. While Ben Henderson will look to counter the grinding wrestling and improved boxing of Clay Guida on Saturday night, we may be treated to watching Henderson showcase his versatility and well rounded skill set. A skill set that includes ideology from the Muay Thai discipline. When "Bendo" matched up against the tough, gritty Mark Bocek, the crafty Henderson was able to stifle any and all offense mustered up by his opponent en route to a unanimous decision victory. In one of those instances, he did so by using a Muay Thai influenced attack. While getting to his feet, Henderson delivered a knee to the body on a slow to defend Bocek. The knee lands and while doing so, he grabs the back of the neck to gain control of Bocek’s body and posture. He accomplished that by reaching behind the neck and gaining a "plum" or a "collar tie" and pinching down, disallowing escape and maximizing control. From there, he lands additional knees to the body and attempts to throw them higher to land on the chin. Even though they are blocked, the strikes are still strong enough to do damage. Henderson also forces the head down, which disorients Bocek so when Ben releases, he's able to land a few solid strikes inside and along the fence. That's solid Thai boxing, folks. Another competitor who really utilizes some technique from Muay Thai is Cub Swanson. However, he is always recognized as more of a kickboxer, even though his roots are strong in Thai boxing. While many may not recognize him, since he has been fighting the injury bug since the folding of the WEC, the ones that do remember Cub for his always exciting bouts and willingness to stand and trade with anyone. This is where it can become extremely difficult to see the line between an art like Muay Thai and kickboxing. But why does it even matter when they are so closely related in their functional usage in mixed martial arts? Here, Swanson resets after a wild exchange with his opponent and launches a head kick from his lead leg. This kick is used the same way you would throw a lead hook with your hands. It won’t have the same power as it would using the rear leg but it hits quicker, taking away precious milliseconds to block the strike.   The strike also takes away balance and forces an opponent to reset his base in order to get into his own rhythm. As you can see, before Mackens Semerzier can reset, Cub throws a front push kick just above the knee, forcing Semerzier to once reset. When you are striking it is important to really have a solid base and to get into a comfortable rhythm. One of the main strengths that Anderson Silva and Jon Jones possess is that they are not only always comfortable on their feet but they throw strikes continuously that throw opponents off balance and out of rhythm. After evading a head kick, Swanson chases his opponent down, landing a very solid leg kick. He lands on the lead leg of the fleeing Semerzier as he circles away towards the side of his lead leg. The kick lands on a planted leg that is incapable of "checking" the kick to help absorb the impact. Landing a kick in this manner does two additional things in comparison to a regular leg kick. (For more on leg kicks click here) The biggest being that the kick puts a lot more power inflicting damage onto the leg. Not only is their momentum added by the stalking Swanson, the kick is landing into the leg as the leg moves into the kick. That additional power can really hamper the mobility and injure the knee. It also opens up for other strikes. Leg kicks tend to force your body to crunch up and your legs to lift in anticipation. Creating an uncomfortable environment in the striking zone opens up a world of opportunities. Look for Swanson to try and emulate this against his opponent on Saturday night. Muay Thai and kickboxing are two of the most important facets of the striking aspect in mixed martial arts. Using kicks and knees open up opportunities for the hands can act as both a great offensive threat and a solid defensive base. That is all for today, Maniacs.

Posted in: leg, muay, kick, thai, muay thai

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A Congolese newcomer training out of Sweden, Papy Abedi makes his UFC and welterweight debut against American Top Team's Muay Thai murderer Thiago Alves at UFC 138: Leben vs. Munoz. First, some background information on Abedi from his fight team's bio section: the nickname "Makambo" translates to "just trouble" in his native tongue, he started training in Judo at age seven (now a black belt) and later worked at Stockholm Muay Thai under the tutelage of Swedish Thai boxer Ricardo Gonzalez, his Wiki page lists him as a purple in BJJ and he's undefeated after eight fights, all of which were contested at 185-pounds. As with any UFC first-timer, his ability to translate his prior success in smaller shows to the pinnacle of global combat will be the mountainous task in front of him. Of course, Abedi isn't just facing the pressure of any ol' UFC caliber fighter, he's colliding with a human wrecking machine. Thiago Alves' had a mediocre two-and-two beginning to his UFC career, clobbering Jeff Cox and Ansar Changalov with first round TKOs but catching an up-kick from Jon Fitch and being triangled by Spencer Fisher. However, the seven-fight swathe he slashed through the welterweight division isolated Alves as a premiere contender and fan-friendly killer. Veteran welterweight contenders like Matt Hughes, Karo Parisyan and Josh Koscheck were all left in his wake. Alves scored violent stoppages in five of those seven victories, four by way of his crushing knees, and being one of two fighters to finish the stalwart Chris Lytle (out of Lytle's staggering fifty-four career opponents) is a small miracle in itself. What impressed me the most with Alves at that time was the way he confronted the domineering takedown artists head on and dismantled them with crippling Thai strikes rather than evade their clutches with elusive footwork. His last four outings would lead in a different direction: winning just one (a decision over John Howard), Alves fell to the undisputed number and one two welterweights in Georges St. Pierre and Jon Fitch, then was stalked, cornered and contained by Rick Story at UFC 130. Story executed a brilliant strategy consisting of calculating footwork, cutting off angles and switching back and forth from tight boxing combinations and smothering control in the clinch. Gifs and analysis in the full entry. From what little footage was available, I've taken the liberty of capturing some clips from Abedi's past performances for your viewing pleasure. He's a southpaw standing 5'11" tall who's finished all but one adversary with five TKOs and two subs. Since Alves is a massive and broad-shouldered welterweight, I don't think Abedi cutting to 170 will lend any more advantages than risks. He will still be a strong welterweight and his extensive Judo background could cause some trouble in the clinch, where Alves is known to tangle. Abedi has also been a viable threat standing and is proclaiming a knockout if Alves trades with him. From these animations you can tell that Abedi has a decent grasp of footwork, use of angles and basic striking fundamentals. The first things that jumps out to me is the way his distinctly closed stance leaves his right leg protruding pretty far forward, which I see as a glowing bullseye for Alves' murderous low kicks. Having a wide and squatty stature, the leg kick is Alves' best (only?) distance weapon but, then again, that would also set up the ideal southpaw vs. traditional stance counter of Abedi's straight left. Abedi's left plunges hard, fast and deep and he also likes to go downstairs with it. One of his common tactics appears to be luring his foes into heated striking exchanges and then dropping levels to get a deep grip in the clinch, where he has a pile of ne-waza options to choose from. That is the case to the right, where Abedi kept the pressure on with strikes before welcoming his opponent's aggressive charge with a quick level drop and excellent control of the hips for a massive slam. He is also unafraid to stay in the pocket when his adversary returns fire, relying on evasive head movement, counter punching and the threat of clinch tie-ups to repel the attack. Alves is far from easy to take down or weak on the mat, boasting a brown belt in BJJ and a lot of experience against elite level grapplers. Though I wasn't able to nail down his rank, Abedi has displayed a firm grasp of position, passing, scrambling, striking and submission savvy on the floor. After the monster takedown above, he deftly slipped into the full mount and showered down some serious ground and pound. This caused his opponent to concentrate on defending the strikes and cover up, and Abedi was quick to capitalize on the scenario by trapping his extending arm, posturing down to lock up the arm-triangle position, and immediately transitioning to side control to turn the corner and elicit the tapout. This makes him a triple threat with striking, Judo and subs. Alves has proven that he can end the fight at any time with a wide range of weapons. His low kicks are bone-breaking, his knees account for almost half of his career TKOs, and both hands have massive power. To the right, Alves clips Tony DeSouza; another southpaw who opened with a lead right hook like Abedi often does. Still, this sequence shows a habit that's brought trouble for Alves recently, which is allowing himself to get backed up against the cage before letting his hands go. Abedi could possibly use that to his advantage by forcing a clinch fight, which is exactly how Story was able to defeat Alves. To the left we see the epitome of Thiago Alves' Muay Thai swagger. He has an excellent stance and defense, his punches are tight, his chin is tucked, his in-and-out movement is uncanny and he's at his best when he's leading the attack like this. He's adept at overwhelming with strikes and flowing with a broad blend of techniques, all loosened with great quickness, accuracy and power. His admirable style of matching -- and usually exceeding -- the aggressive onslaught of his opponents is evident here. In Muay Thai, a common philosophy is that "if you're moving backwards, you're losing the fight". Alves embodies that outlook perfectly, perhaps taking cues from Wanderlei Silva, the fighter he lists as a personal hero who became a legend for always trudging forward and slinging stiff leather.  While courageous, the habit is not devoid of risk. Again, in analyzing the Story loss, the wrestler was able to put Alves on the defensive and keep him on his heels with the looming threat of takedowns. Instead of assuming a decisive range of either "in" or "outside" of the pocket, Story methodically crept forward, shrunk the gap and steered Alves into corners, playing a little chess game of feinting takedowns to set up strikes and vice-versa. It seems like Abedi's proficiency with striking and clinch work could open up a similar strategy. Even so, and while you can never count anyone out, it's hard to drum up a viable case for Abedi winning. Other than the faint correlation I just made, Alves being drained from the cut, totally overlooking him or Abedi being a future superstar, all signs point to Alves being on another level until Abedi demonstrates otherwise. My Prediction: Thiago Alves by TKO   Abedi gifs via Caposa Alves x DeSouza gif via MMA-Core.com All others via Zombie Prophet of IronForgesIron.com

Posted in: ufc, welterweight, thai, abedi, alve

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I've got to admit the idea of hopping on a Greyhound bus and traveling to Atlantic City has never been on my top ten list of things I'm really interested in doing before I die. Actually it has never even been on my list of things to ever contemplate doing in my life. I would have probably thrown going to Atlantic City on my list of things I'll be happy to never do. Fortunately my good buddy Bauzen used some jedi mind trickery and dangled some Catvonc style kryptonite in front of my face and convinced me to cash in some travel vouchers and head to the Jersey shore for the weekend. I say fortunately because had Bauzen not exploited my weakness I might not have gone out of my way to attend what in my opinion was one of the most well run, classiest and amazing combat sports events I've ever attended. The show that Take On Productions puts on is a well oiled machine and I can only hope they continue to grow and their show is able to expand throughout the country. From the local favorite talented ring announcer Larry Legend to MuayThaiislife.com owner Eric Rivera handling the fight commentary, to the promotors and fighters-this is a professional and entertaining show. I know from personal experience, we've got nothing that even comes close to their level of production quality here in Atlanta. Take On's event truly made me fall deeper in lust with the sport of Muay Thai and if you ever have the opportunity to go to one of their shows I say you had better jump on it. I'm not even mad that I somehow lost an earring, a ring, a phone charger and a flat iron in the post fight celebrations. I'll blame all of that on sharing too many watermelon rock rancher drinks with Bauzen's girlfriend. The West Coast has always boasted about having the creme de la creme of Muay Thai fighters on American soil but I think the gyms on the East Coast are ready to give them a run for their money. Gyms like Sitan NY, Phil Nurse's The Wat, Cool Hearts from Philly and Boston Muay Thai just to name a few-have trained and assembled crews of skilled and exciting fighters that combat sport junkies need to start paying close attention to. From the ammy fights to the pro debuts and full rules title fights-there was not one moment where I felt the action was lagging. Here's some of the highlights of the night: Amateur fight Rich Brattole of Weapons 9/Strategic Combat Gym vs Tim Scmeier of Sitan NY These guys were both obviously not used to wearing headgear, which is a New Jersey athletic commission rule and not a requirement where the fighters normally fight in their home state of NY, but despite that they went to war with each other trading blows back and forth for the entire 3 round contest. Amateur fight Caitlyn Dempsey of Impact Martial Arts vs Christina Rodriguez of Girl Fight MMA NJ The ladies brought the first blood of the evening and the first extremely loud crowd response of the night. Caitlyn Dempsey won her debut fight and the crowd erupted in excitement. Amateur fight Tianna Urman of The Wat vs Prarie Ruglio of Girl Fight MMA Prarie came at Tianna Urman raging with unrelenting fists for one full minute before her right hand shut Urman down for good. Girl Fight MMA fans in the crowd went absolutely bonkers and let's be honest, Bauzen had a momentary fear of being trampelled by a mass of angry lesbians. Main event Justin Greskiewicz of Cool Hearts Muay Thai Philly vs Eddie Martinez of Sitan Gym NY Another really great fight featuring one of the Sitan gym fighters Eddie Martinez versus the always fun to watch purple haired Justin Greskiewicz. Justin took full advantage of the NJ elbow allowance and used those along with some kicks and punching combos to take the very close split decision win over Eddie Martinez. Pro fight Jay Matias of Sitan Gym NY vs Jake Mainini of Boston Muay Thai Saving the best for last here-this was the pro debut for both of these fighters and most of the media in attendance agree it was hands down the fight of the night. These two stole the show and put on an amazing display of technical and precise Muay Thai from round one all the way to the end of the fifth round and never once looked fatigued. Jay Matias gave the crowd a show that they will talk about for years afterwards with his arsenal of kicks and unrelenting combinations that ultimately won him the unanimous decision over an also very skilled Mainini. Here's a small video clip from this fan favorite fight to help fill your hungry Muay Thai bellies.  I know right now you are sitting there dying to watch the rest of that fight. As a matter of fact, I'm certain you want to watch the whole event and you are now angrily axe kicking your little sister into your mom's plastic covered couch because you missed out on all the action this weekend. Well calm down and stop being an angry bully. You can go check out the whole event on GFL.tv right now. The full event results on TakeOnProductions.com and don't forget to follow TakeOn Muay Thai on Twitter and like them on Facebook for all the information you are going to need about their upcoming shows. 

Posted in: fight, show, event, muay, thai

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Posted in: muay, thai, tweet, section

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This fanpost was promoted to the front page by Anton Tabuena Saengchot Parkaiphet (right) and Robert Lek at the Dare Championship 2/11 weigh in Ole Laursen’s Legacy Gym in Ubon Ratchatani is well off the beaten track and doesn’t go in for a lot of marketing so most readers probably won’t be too familiar with it. It is not a camp which has a huge turnover of tourists because there is little to do there except train.This is just the way that Laursen likes it and he is trying to use it as an environment to develop some top Thai talent. His best student Saengchot Parkaiphet (Nuay) made a successful professional debut at Dare Championship 2/11 recently winning with a submission in the very first round,"Nuay started training MMA a year ago. He saw us traveling for fights, saw the fights on video, watched the UFC and watched us train every day. I sensed he wanted to be a part of it so we got him started and since then he hasn’t missed a session. We’ve had a few other Thai trainers try MMA but Nuay is different because he loves the ground game. He understands the ground game is something you can’t do without in MMA and he embraces it," he said.Nuay made his MMA debut against another Muay Thai fighter but it was his superior ground game which made the difference as he was able to take the fight to the ground, move from side control to mount and finish the fight with an armbar.It was a slick display of grappling which underlined Laursens belief that Nuay could make it in the world of professional MMA, something he feels would be a sensible career move,"MMA is the future, he can only go so far in his village Muay Thai fights and he has had a few hundreds of those now. His striking is gold, his Muay Thai is superb and his ground skills are growing daily. At first when he was being butchered by us all in rolling he was losing heart but then when guys came in his size and he started butchering them he realised that he was actually learning. Once he started and was submitting guys it made him see what he had achieved through training and made him want to train even more." This fanpost was promoted to the front page by Anton Tabuena Saengchot Parkaiphet (right) and Robert Lek at the Dare Championship 2/11 weigh in Ole Laursen’s Legacy Gym in Ubon Ratchatani is well off the beaten track and doesn’t go in for a lot of marketing so most readers probably won’t be too familiar with it. It is not a camp which has a huge turnover of tourists because there is little to do there except train.This is just the way that Laursen likes it and he is trying to use it as an environment to develop some top Thai talent. His best student Saengchot Parkaiphet (Nuay) made a successful professional debut at Dare Championship 2/11 recently winning with a submission in the very first round,"Nuay started training MMA a year ago. He saw us traveling for fights, saw the fights on video, watched the UFC and watched us train every day. I sensed he wanted to be a part of it so we got him started and since then he hasn’t missed a session. We’ve had a few other Thai trainers try MMA but Nuay is different because he loves the ground game. He understands the ground game is something you can’t do without in MMA and he embraces it," he said.Nuay made his MMA debut against another Muay Thai fighter but it was his superior ground game which made the difference as he was able to take the fight to the ground, move from side control to mount and finish the fight with an armbar.It was a slick display of grappling which underlined Laursens belief that Nuay could make it in the world of professional MMA, something he feels would be a sensible career move,"MMA is the future, he can only go so far in his village Muay Thai fights and he has had a few hundreds of those now. His striking is gold, his Muay Thai is superb and his ground skills are growing daily. At first when he was being butchered by us all in rolling he was losing heart but then when guys came in his size and he started butchering them he realised that he was actually learning. Once he started and was submitting guys it made him see what he had achieved through training and made him want to train even more." Ole Laursen submitting BJJ purple belt Eduard Pachu at Martial Combat 1 It is not always easy to make the transition from tapping out training partners to submitting opponents in mixed martial arts but Nuay made it look easy. His opponent at Dare Championship 1/11, Robert Lek from Phuket Top Team, was reported to have been working very hard on his ground game too but Laursen was not surprised to see his student prevail, "To be honest I wasn’t surprised because I see in Nuay a love and dedication during our training that I don’t see in many. I knew he had trained hard and I was sure that Nuay’s opponent did not train as hard and was sure that his ground game was not on Nuay’s level. The funny thing is Nuay wanted to win by armbar, when he got the mount we were all screaming out for ground and pound but he wanted to show off his newly gained ground skills and he did just that."Dare Championship make a big deal of fighters entrances with lengthy introductions and walk ins which are accompanied by strobe lights and ear splitting heavy metal music. It is in sharp contrast to Muay Thai where the protagonists are expected to sit quietly besides the ring while they wait for the preceding fight to finish but Laursen thinks  this is something fighters will quickly become accustomed to,"It’s definitely something new for them. The Thais that come from Muay Thai background are not very comfortable with the western style showmanship but they do show they own style. They have charisma and add something new to the game and I’m sure that Muay Thai fans worldwide will stop and follow the progress of the Thais entering MMA."Nuay made his MMA debut on September 24th, less than a month ago, and has already had three Muay Thai fights since then. After more than 200 professional fights he has a familiarity with fighting that most mixed martial artists could never contemplate and if he can take some of this confidence and composure into the cage he could be destined for a fantastic career in mixed martial arts.The latest news from Laursen himself is that he is back in training and well on the road to recovery after the knee injury which prevented him from appearing at One Fighting Championship 1.After over a year on the sidelines he is desperate to be a part of the promotion which is rapidly emerging as the biggest in Asia and Laursen is likely to be back in action in early 2012 with a big announcement from One FC reportedly imminent.For all the latest on Ole Laursen and the fighters at the Legacy Gym sign up to his fanpage on Facebook.

Posted in: fight, mma, ground, thai, laursen

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There's a dish in Thailand called 'Weeping Tiger Beef' and just like the beef between Tiger Muay Thai and the newly formed Phuket Top Team gym in Thailand, there are conflicting stories as to how the dish got it's name. One legend states its because the hot chillies in the recipe caused a tiger to cry when he ate it. the other story says that a tiger cried when a hunter stole and killed his cow. Seems there are always conflicting or different stories around everything. This dish is an appropriate meal to serve up along side this article not only because there are conflicting stories as to it's origins but the name of it itself 'Weeping Tiger Beef" is a perfect title for this two sided disagreement. It seems Tiger Muay Thai is now saddened that their one time friends and training partners Roger Huerta and Mike Swick who have seperated from Tiger Muay Thai and decided to open their own camp '150 meters down the road' and in the meantime train with the rival gym, Phuket Top Team. Since this beef started there have lengthy and disgruntled message board postings, traitor accusations, police involvement, people being arrrested, illegal firearms possesion and even alleged death threats. It's got all the key ingredients for a really kick ass Jason Statham movie. Instead of a car chase scene though, people would be trading gun fire and trying to run each other off the road just like Swick in those kitchen on wheel contraptions. Don't try and steal my idea-I'm lining up meetings with movie producers now to pitch the idea. Until the movie comes out here's some of the background to this spicy beef with explanations from both sides of the plate.  August 20th: Ray Elbe of Tiger Muay Thai and Season 9 of The Ultimate Fighter posts a lengthy blog and video telling everyone his opinion about why Roger Huerta was no longer training with Tiger Muay Thai. You can read the entire post for yourself here. It basically tells from Ray's perspective how Tiger Muay Thai opened their arms and hearts and gave Roger Huerta the 'VIP treatment' while he was with them and how he is disappointed that Roger no longer feels comfortable training with people who housed him for free for 12 months. September 20th:Phuket Top Team announces a returning fight for Roger Huerta versus the one and only War Machine. The following day, Roger Huerta's former training camp Tiger Muay Thai tweets an offer to train War Machine stating: '@warmachine170 do u have an email we can reach u at. #Huerta spent the last year training @tigermuaythai we would love to help u get ready' War Machine responds wanting to know why TMT would want to train him after spending years training Huerta to which TMT tweets War MAchine to facebook Ray Elbe for reasons why. Whoa. About two weeks ago: KruThailand posts on an mma.tv forum that a few months ago Ray Elbe was arrested in Thailand for teaching without a permit and that there are rumors flying around Thailand that Phuket Top Team were the authorities informants even providing alleged video evidence to the police of Elbe bribing and paying off officials. KruThailand also claims in this posting to have been at a TMT BBQ Beatdown in August when the Phuket Top Team owners arrived with "a groups of thugs with a gun in his pants". A few days later the Phuket Top Team owners wife was arrested for illegal firearms possesion and ever since Ray Elbe has been alledgedly recieving death threats via facebook and twitter messages. Two weeks ago: The owner of PPT posts on his facebook that none of the gun accusations are true and that they were in fact raided. PTT owner claims his gym was raided because TMT told the polic that were drugs there. October 6th: Mike Swick pops up on the ever growing mma.tv thread to let everyone know there are two sides to every story and he intends to give the Huerta Swick side shortly. October 7th: Mike Swick posts a very long back story explaining his and Roger's side of this disagreement. It basically states that Mike and Roger both did not take any advantage of TMT and gave many free smeminars and trainign sessions and marketing videos all free of charge to TMT. He also states that TMT 'set them up like a cloak and dagger when asking them to train there on the condition that they don't try and steal their trainers, only to then turn around and publicly accuse them of doing that very thing' You can read the entire detailed Swick explanation here. Around 130AM this morning (October 8th): Tiger Muay Thai pops up on Swick's explanation thread on mma.tv and gives a retort pretty much denying anyone at TMT ever had an issue with Swick or Huerta but that an 'anonymous email from the USA' discussing Roger Huerta's involvement in stealing trainers from TMT- caused them to have hurt feelings and feel betrayed by the trust of 'a friend'. TMT wishes Swick and Huerta well, but feels as though the two deciding to go and train with the one gym in the area who is a definite rival to TMT was malicious and harsh. There you have it-all the makings for a really fantastic action movie. Whew, reading all of that was hardwork. I know you must be starving so here's the recipe for that Weeping Tiger Beef so you can fill your empty belly. Yum.

Posted in: huerta, roger, thai, tiger, tmt

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After a month of major events in September, the kickboxing world cools off a bit (though not too much) in October. It's Showtime will be away until November, but there are a number of key events still taking place. This weekend will bring the first major event of the month, as the Muaythai Premier League travles to Padova, Italy and brings another fight card full of intriguing bouts. Thai Fight will be taking the semifinal round of its welterweight and super welterweight tournaments to Bangkok on October 24th. It also looks as though we'll be treated to the K-1 World Grand Prix Final 16 on October 29th, though there hasn't been any official confirmation of the bouts for the event.   5. Sudsakorn Sor. Klinmee vs. Halim Issaoui: Fight Code Dragon Series Final 8 (October 15, Marseilles, France) The reason that this bout makes the list is simple: Sudsakorn Sor. Klinmee is one of the more talented fighters that you'll come across. The twenty-something Thai should win this fight - as well as his next in the tournament - and find himself in the final round later this year. If you're somehow still not sold on Sudsakorn, or just unfamiliar with what he can do, take this opportunity to check him out. 4. Joe Schilling vs. Kaoklai Kaennorsing: M-1 Grand USA vs. Thailand (October 21, Los Angeles, California, USA) One of America's top Muay Thai talents will get his shot on the international stage, as Joe Schilling takes on Kaoklai for the WBC Muay Thai interim light heavyweight world title in California later this month. For whatever reason, it seems there are still a fair amount of people not terribly familiar with Schilling. That's probably going to change real soon. Schilling has shown great power inside the ring and he's a fighter to really watch for. Obviously, he's taking on another great fighter in the Thai veteran Kaoklai. Whatever the end result here, it's likely to be a fan-friendly bout. 3. Fabio Pinca vs. Mosab Amrani: Thai Fight 2011 Semifinals (October 24th, Bangkok, Thailand) Defending Thai Fight champion Fabio Pinca is coming off of a win over Japanese representative Yokoyama Shigeyuki, while Mosab Amrani enters following a win over Ibrahim Chiahou. Pinca and Amrani have both established themselves as players on the international scene. Pinca has done so perhaps a bit more quietly, fighting in Muay Thai bouts, while Amrani gained the attention of kickboxing fans through his exploits in It's Showtime and elsewhere (following a very successful Muay Thai run of his own earlier in his career). Whoever wins this bout is likely to be involved in yet another fight to watch, as they'll be headed for a final against either Dongsu Kim or his heavily favored opponent, Kem Sitsongpeenong. 2. Ky Hollenbeck vs. Jordan Watson: Muaythai Premier League: Strength and Honour (October 8, Padova, Italy) Ky Hollenbeck, in passing each test put before him in recent bouts, has established himself as one of the front-runners in American Muay Thai today. Each time Hollenbeck fights, there seems to be some blurb here or there about his upcoming bout being perhaps the toughest test he's faced. Well, this time around, the word perhaps has no place in the discussion. Jordan Watson is one of the favorites on the currently-airing-only-in-Asia Muay Thai reality television series, The Challenger Muaythai. Watson has a wealth of experience to build off and is known to many fans for his bout against Buakaw Por. Pramuk. 1. Mohamed Khamal vs. Liam Harrison: Muaythai Premier League: Strength and Honour (October 8, Padova, Italy) This is plainly one of the best match ups of the year. Interest in Mohamed Khamal seems to have risen a bit as of late, as he holds two key wins over recent It's Showtime Fast and Furious Tournament winner Robin van Roosmalen. Khamal has a number of great wins, but he's generally fought at super welterweight in kickboxing and simply outclassed opponents while at a bit of a size disadvantage. While he's competing at welterweight in the Muaythai Premier League, Khamal is immediately running into one of the toughest opponents that division has to offer. Liam Harrison is truly a world-class Muay Thai practitioner, known for his two bouts against Saenchai and his run as the WMC lightweight titleholder.

Posted in: fight, bout, muay, october, thai

Read the full article at Head Kick Legend

[div class="notice" class2="icon"]The following is from an article on LiverKick.com, part of the MiddleEasy Network.[/div] The world of Muay Thai in the United States is a bit of an odd one at times, as there is some fragmentation. For a while now there have been regions where Muay Thai is incredibly hot and there are local promoters doing great things. Los Angeles and the Bay Area have been there, as is Las Vegas and especially in the past few years, New York. New York has best been known for Friday Night Fights, the long-running Muay Thai promotion run by the Church Street Boxing gym. We've seen a new promotion rise up recently and begin to do big, awesome things, and that is TaKe On Productions. TKO Productions has been running since 2009 and has been picking up steam ever since. TaKe On has a big Muay Thai show coming up on October 22nd at Bally's Grand Ballroom in Atlantic City. TKO Productions has had eleven big sell out shows in a row before striking out to Atlantic City, working now with MSG Sports (Madison Square Garden). Read More...

Posted in: atlantic city, muay, thai, tko productions, muay thai

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