Basic rules of Thai boxing matches

A 'Muay Thai' match formally have no more than 5 rounds, each round take 3 minutes to last, with a two-minute rest period in between. No additional rounds is allowed. Boxers must regularly wear gloves, each weighing not less than 6 ounces (172 gramm). The gloves must not be squeezed, kneaded or crushed to change its original shape. Rules on contestants' boxing costumes. ₪ Contestants must wear only trunks (red or blue according to their corners) appropriately fit their bodies. ₪ Contestants must wear standard supporters or sturdy athletic cups to protect their groin,Gum shield may be used. ₪ Wear no shirts nor shoes, but ankle cap is permitted. ₪ A sacred cord known as Mongkol can be worn around the head only during the pre-fight ritual of paying homage to ancestral teachers of Muay Thai, to be removed before the start of the fight. ₪ Metal or other equipments that will be harmful to the opponent is prohibited.

Equipment used in Thai Boxing Match

Equipment that is necessary for Muay Thai matches must be provided by the stadium. There are a stopwatch, a signal gong, a warning bell, boxing gloves of various sizes according to the rules, equipment to provide water for boxers, and other additional personal accessories for boxers who have not prepared their own such as boxing shorts in red or blue, jock straps, surgical tape, or sacred cords. Thai boxing can be classified into two major types, the first is muay lak which puts the emphasis on caution and patience, and is very rare nowadays. Theo- ther is muay kiew which is full of tricks and feints performed to catch the opponent off guard.

Muay Thai Video

Muay Thai is fought in five three-minute rounds with two-minute breaks in between. The fight is preceded by a wai khru dance, in which each contestant pays homage to his teachers. Besides the symbolic meaning, the dance is a good warm-up exercise. You will notice that each boxer wears a headband and armbands. The headband, called mongkhol, is believed to bestow luck to the wearer since it has been blessed by a monk or the boxer’s own teacher. Since Buddhism and the teacher play important roles in the life of Thais, the headband is both a lucky charm and a spiritual object. It will be removed after the wai khru dance, and only by the boxer’s trainer. The armbands, meanwhile, are believed to offer protection and are only removed when the fight has ended.

An International Passion
Muay Thai, along with soccer, is certainly the most passionately followed sport in the country. Television networks broadcast fights five days a week, and the fight results at major stadiums are reported in all major newspapers. International boxing is also very popular, and the country has produced dozens of world champions, but they all started out as Muay Thai fighters. So it is not surprising that a boy as young as seven or eight would start training to become one—and many do, at stables across the country. Most provincial capitals have a boxing ring, but the ultimate dream of young boxers is to fight at Lumpini or Ratchadamnoen, the biggest and most famous stadiums in the country. Lumpini and Ratchadamnoen alternate, so there is a fight program every night. Tickets on an average evening are 220, 440 and 1,000 baht, but on big nights prices of ringside seats may go up to 2,000 baht. Ratchadamnoen’s Sunday Special rates are good bargains, with ringside tickets going for 500 baht each. Fights usually begins around 6:30 p.m., with preliminary bouts featuring younger, less experienced boxers, and build up towards the main event, usually around nine o’clock.

Terminology

Terminology

• Nak Muay - A Muay Thai fighter.
  

  

  A pair of Muay Thai shorts, note the Thai text that translates to Muay Thai in English.
• Nak Su - Thai word for Muay Thai warrior (in Muay Thai term)
• Kru - Instructor or trainer.
• Ajarn - Master or instructor (more advanced than kru).
• Wai khru ram muay. Pre-fight ritual dance.
• Pra Jiad - A type of armband worn by Muay Thai fighters.
• Mong Kon - Headgear worn by Muay Thai fighters.
• Krang Ruang - A Pra Jiad that has special meaning to the person wearing it. It could be anything from a piece of their father's hair to a swath from their mother's sarang.
• Puang Malai - Floral wreaths that are given to a fighter before a fight by friends or fans. They look somewhat like the Hawaiian Lei.

Techniques

The basic offensive techniques in Muay Thai use fists, elbows, shins, feet, and knees to strike the opponent. To bind the opponent for both offensive and defensive purposes, small amounts of stand-up grappling are used: the clinch. Muay Thai is often a fighting art of attrition, where opponents exchange blows with one another. This is certainly the case with traditional stylists in Thailand, but is a less popular form of fighting in the contemporary world fighting circuit. With the success of Muay Thai in mixed martial arts fighting, it has become the de facto martial art of choice for competitive stand-up fighters. As a result, it has evolved accordingly and incorporated much more powerful hand striking techniques used in western style boxing, and the Thai style of exchanging blow for blow is no longer favorable. Note: when Muay Thai fighters compete against fighters of other styles (and if the rules permit it), they almost invariably emphasize elbow (sok) and knee (kao) techniques to gain a distinct advantage in fighting. Almost all techniques in Muay Thai use the entire body movement, rotating the hip with each kick, punch, and block. The rotation of the hips in Muay Thai techniques, and intensive focus on "core muscles" (such as abdominal muscles and surrounding muscles) is very distinctive and is what sets Muay Thai apart from other styles of martial arts.

Pre-fight rituals

Pre-fight rituals
Two young fighters doing the pre-match ritual.


Even before entering the ring many fighters perform rituals. Some may kneel before the ring, others might pray with their coach or by themselves or perform a series of repetitive movements, such as touching the ring ropes 3 times. Thai boxers always climb over the top rope when entering the ring, because in Thai culture the head is considered to be more important than the feet, which are thought to be dirty. It is therefore important to always have the head above the feet while entering the ring. Once in the ring, a fighter might go to the center and bow to each side.

Now begins the Wai Kru ritual or (Wai khru ram muay). The Wai Kru usually starts with the fighter walking around the ring, counter-clockwise. This could be described as "sealing the ring", showing that the match is between only these two combatants. The ritual is both practical and spiritual. In a practical sense, it prepares the body for combat. During the Wai Kru there are many different movements and steps that a fighter might perform before the match, along with stretches. Some motions imitate, for example, a swallow, a hunter, a soldier or an executioner. Some fighters use this ritual to attempt to scare their opponents, commonly by stomping around them. But in a deeper sense, the fighter is expressing religious devotion, humility and gratitude. Transcending both physical and temporal limitations, he opens himself to the divine presence and allows it to infuse his heart and soul. In ancient times, the ritual was intended to show devotion to the King and the fighter's mentor. Today, that devotion is given to the organizer of the match and the fighter's trainer.[1] The ritual also gives the fighter some time alone before the fight to collect his thoughts and concentrate on the task ahead.

After this dance, the fighter walks over to his coach who removes the Mong Kon and the Pong Malai. The match begins after a review of the rules by the judge and a glove shake.

boxe thai

tag and ping

Technorati Profile

tony jaa

Legend of Muay Thai

Legendary Heros

Nai Khanom Tom was a famous practitioner of Muay Thai. Around 1774, he was captured along with other Thai prisoners, either in a skirmish or at the fall of the ancient capital of Siam of Ayutthaya. He was brought to Rangoon in Burma, where the Burmese King Mangra was holding a religious festival in honor of Buddha's relics. The festivities included many forms of entertainment. King Mangra was reported to be curious to see how the various fighting styles of Burma and other countries would compare. At one point, he wanted to see how Muay Boran would compare to the Burmese art Lethwei. Nai Khanomtom was selected to fight against the Burmese champion. Nai Khanomtom did a Wai Kru pre-fight dance which puzzled all of the Burmese. When the fight began, he charged out and using punches, kicks, elbows, and knees, quickly pummeled the Burmese.

Muay Thai History

Muaythai History

Muaythai is the devestating "science of 8 limbs" from Thailand developed over 1000's of years.
The exact date of the creation of this fighting art is not known but it is widely believed to be over 2000 years old. Many other martial arts are believed to be this ancient though many of them were only created in the last 100 years (Aikido, Taekwondo, Karate).
Muaythai used to be referred to as Pahuyuth (multi-faceted fighting style) a couple of hundred years ago, but muaythai itself is only a part of the whole Thai fighting system that covers weapons and groundwork which many refer to as Ling-Lom, though this is not the correct name for it. Many people do not know about this "no holds barred" of muaythai and there are very few people that can teach it.

ROYAL muay

Royal Muay

Muay gradually became a possible means of personal advancement as the nobility increasingly esteemed skillful practitioners of the art and invited selected fighters to come to live in the Royal palace to teach muay to the staff of the royal household, soldiers, princes or the king's personal guards.

Some time during the Ayutthaya Period, a platoon of royal guards was established, whose duty was to protect king and the country. They were known as Grom Nak Muay (Muay Fighters' Regiment). This royal patronage of muay continued through the reigns of Rama V and VII.

muaythai

Muay thai

Muay Thai (IPA: [/muai₃₂ tʰai₃₂/]; Thai: มวยไทย) also known as Thai Boxing or The Art of the Eight Limbs is the Thai name for a form of hard martial art practiced in several Southeast Asian countries including Thailand.In Cambodia it is known as Pradal Serey, in Malaysia Tomoi and a similar style in Myanmar is called Lethwei and in Laos, Muay Lao. The different styles of fighting in mainland Southeast Asia are analogous to the different types of Kung Fu in China or Silat in the South East Asian islands. Thai military uses a modified form of Muay Thai called Lerdrit

ong-bak/martial arts.

What's Muaythai?
Muay Thai (Thai Boxing) is what the Thai people call their own martial art. The art of Muay Thai has been the country's most popular spectator sport for hundreds of years.. It is unique among other kinds of fighting disciplines in its approach to close quarters fighting. Fighters are able to more effectively use their elbows, knees, feet and fists than in other martial arts.
The Wai Kru (respects to the teacher) also known as Ram Muay (boxing dance) is an important part of any evening watching Thai Boxing. These are ceremonies that are performed before each Muay Thai bout. Sometimes the Wai Kru are brief and basic, but other times they may be eloquent performances that draw praise and applause from the crowd. It is said that those who see well can determine who will win the fight by watching two fighters perform their Wai Kru. Teachers are highly respected in Thai society, and many artistic disciplines, not just Muay Thai, perform Wai Kru or "respects to the teacher". Foreigners viewing these rituals should take care to be polite and not act disrespectfully regarding the Wai Kru. The Thais take seriously any insult to the Wai Kru, just as you would if somebody insulted your spiritual beliefs.
Before the competition of Muay-Thai ,Krabi-Krabong (Thai swords) , or any other ancient weapons martial arts , every competitor must perform the "Wai-Khru" ritual and perform the boxing dance which is the continued tradition since ancient times."Wai-Khru" is a way to pay respect to his majesty the king or the chairman of the competition tournament. Furthermore , "Wai-Khru" is the way to realize the goodness of the master who gave them the knowledge. It's also the way to create the strength of their mind. The style of the dance is unique to each boxing bureau. Boxers who danced the same style wouldn't box each other since they realize that they have the same master. Furthermore, to dance is one way to warm up before starting the fight . It also helps relax the stress and to prepare body and mind to be ready to get into the battle.