Muay Thai
Trip Start
Sep 03, 2004
1
33
44
Trip End
Dec 22, 2004
Bangkok,
Thailand
Sunday, November 21, 2004
Andy had seen some Muay Thai on TV before and wanted to see it in Thailand itself, but Jillian was a bit apprehensive, but we both ended up really enjoying it.
Our tickets were 1,500 Baht each (18 Pounds) for ringside which really were ringside, we were sitting in the very front row about 8 feet from the ring. Our tickets also entitled us to free soft drinks all night. Enough about that, now onto the fighting.
Before each match, when the fighters enter the ring, they bow towards their place of birth then to the north, south, east and west of Thailand. After that, they perform a dance in tribute to their trainer, accompanied by traditional Thai music played live in the stands which is also played right throughout the fight.
The fighters came out for the night's first bout and they were so young looking, Andy spoke to the youngest looking boy's trainer and he said his fighter was 14
Best Photo of the Night
. Andy thought that because they were so young it'd only be a light contact match, like we'd have in the UK and Ireland for that age group, but they came out all guns blazing. The fighters were kicking, punching, kneeing and elbowing right from the off, this was definitely NOT light contact. Jillian commented that it was like watching Bryan and Jason.After going the full distance, 5 rounds of 3 minutes, the youngest fighter finished the winner, but the pair of them looked absoulutely shattered. Towards the end of the match, they were just holding eachother, in Boxing that's a chance for a rest before the Referee pulls the fighters apart, but not in Muay Thai. This is when the fighters get their knees into action, kneeing eachother in the back and stomach, and the referee lets this go on for a good wee while before separating them, it's all part of the sport.
The second bout involved two older fighters, but nobody the whole night would've been any older than about Andy's age. This fight was, amazingly, rougher than before, and the fighters heavier. The heaviest fighters on the night were about 10.5 Stones in weight, but they were all so toned, just pure muscle.
The first fight that didn't go the distance was the third bout. The fighter in the red shorts grimaced when he got a hard kick to his calf muscle, and that was spotted straight away by the fighter in the blue shorts. He got the red against the ropes and just kept kicking him so hard on the same part of the leg, until the red simply could no longer stand up and fell down
Betting
. That was match over, amazing fighting and the sound of the kicks was sickening at times, great stuff :-)The most sickening moment of the night, for all fellas anyway, was the fifth bout. This was two young boys again, and when they were kicking eachother up close, one kick went astray and caught the fighter in the blue shorts full in the goolies. He went straight down clutching his groin crying, and had to be carried out of the ring. The other fighter was so apologetic, but that was match over, though we're not sure if the fighter in the red shorts was disqualified or the match simply called off.
The best bout of the night was the 7th, part of the night's main event. The fighting was again amazing, with highkicks to the head and flying knee strikes. But the best moment was the knockout, the fighter in the red shorts had been taking a bit of a pounding but had started to come back strongly. That was until he was caught with a quick and powerful jab that caught him right on the jaw, which was followed through with an elbow strike. He went down like a sack of spuds, and was out cold for a few seconds. That was some fight, quite even until that moment and great to see the 2 fighters embracing after the red had got back up. Most of the fighters did that, they all fought like arch enemies then looked like friends at the end, though some fights didn't end that way seemingly due to controversial decisions.
The final bout of the night was under Queensberry Rules (Boxing), but after watching all that Muay Thai, Boxing was boring in comparison and we left after the 2nd round. Most of the spectators seemed to think likewise, except for the crazy Thai bookmakers, who'd provided the night's comic relief for Jillian and I.
More comedy was on the bill when we tried to get back to our hotel, taxis were asking astronomical prices, so we decided on a motorbike taxi. Us two, without helmets, and the driver on a moped, madness but fun.
