History of Muay Thai . . . .

Muay Thai has a long history in Thailand and is the country's national sport. Traditional Muay Thai practiced today varies significantly from the ancient art Muay Boran and uses kicks and punches in a ring with gloves similar to those used in Western boxing. Muay Thai is referred to as "The Science of Eight Limbs", as the hands, shins, elbows, and knees are all used extensively in this art. A master practitioner of Muay Thai thus has the ability to execute strikes using eight "points of contact," as opposed to "two points" (fists) in Western boxing and "four points" (fists, feet) used in the primarily sport-oriented forms of martial arts.

Muay Thai is known as "King of the Ring" in kickboxing circles.  These fights feature punches, kicks, elbows, knees, standing grappling and head-butts to wear down and knock out their opponent.  Thai training methods develop devastating power, speed and superb cardio-vascular endurance as well as fighting spirit.  Muay Thai  training as also quite safe thanks to sophisticated pad training that evolved to keep fighters healthy between fights.  Muay Thai has also proven very effective outside the ring and has been embraced enthusiastically by practitioners of a variety of self-defense, sporting, military and law enforcement activities.

 The practice of Muay Boran was kept up largely by Buddhist monks who were the keepers and teachers of all arts both practical and spiritual. Temples began holding fights during festive occasions. As every Thai man is expected to live as a monk at least once in his life the art grew in popularity among common people, so much so that it was said that any man worth his salt would practice it.

 Muay Boran's form is quite efficient, in that it maximizes the amount of damage that each blow can inflict, and effective, in that it can easily lead to the death or serious injury of the opponent. Most notably, Muay Boran emphasizes the use of extremely powerful elbow and knee techniques, and combinations thereof, always thrown at full force and speed, with the intent to overcome one's adversary as quickly as possible, because another one might already be coming close or attacking.

A MUAY THAI FIGHT . . .

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.

 A match is decided by a knockout or by points. Three judges decide who carries the round and the one who wins the most rounds, win the fight. The referee plays a very important role, since the boxers safety depends on his decision.

Please send questions about this website to dianna@muaythaifit.com

Last Modified: 04/06/10