© 2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved.

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MUAY THAI (THAI BOXING)

By M.G. Edwards

I attended my first muaythai match January 2012

at the decaying Lumpinee Boxing Stadium in

Bangkok, Thailand. Also known as Thai boxing,

muaythai is a form of kickboxing that combines

martial arts with traditional hand-to-hand boxing

and is the national sport of Thailand. Many

kickboxing enthusiasts consider muaythai the

"King of the Ring," with fights that feature

punches, kicks, elbows, knees, grappling, and

head-butts intended to wear down and knock out

opponents.

The origins of muaythai are unclear, although

tradition has it that the sport emerged centuries

ago from the hand-to-hand (sword and baton)

battlefield tactics of the Thai army. The

Thailand-based World Muaythai Council

suggests that muaythai developed in rural

Thailand as a way for Thais to defend their lands

from foreign invaders or settlers.

The sport came into its own during the reign

of King Naresuan the Great (1590-1605) of the

Ayutthaya Kingdom. In 1584, the then-Crown

Prince called upon Thai soldiers to learn

muaythai in order to improve their combat skills.

According to the Thai Boxing Association of the

USA, early bouts pitted Thai army units against

one another with few rules, no weight divisions,

and no time limits. The matches were very

popular throughout the kingdom.

Thais generally consider muaythai an

essential aspect of Thai culture. During the

Ayutthaya Period, the sport became a favored

pastime among Thais, who went to muaythai

training camps to watch bouts and to train. A

betting culture developed around the sport that

persists today. The reign of King Rama V (1868-

1910) was a golden age for the sport as fighters

from around the kingdom competed in Royal

Command matches for the chance to earn fame,

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glory, and a military title bestowed by the king.

Muaythai adapted to changes in Thai

culture. For centuries, matches were held

wherever space was available until the standard

boxing ring with ropes was adopted during the

reign of King Rama VI (1910-1925). Muaythai

was part of the curriculum in Thai schools until

the 1920s, when it was discontinued because of

the high number of injuries sustained by

students. Stadiums replaced makeshift rings

during the reign of King Rama VII (1925-35). In

the 1930s, a uniform set of rules, time limits, and

weight classes were introduced, and fighters

began to use boxing gloves instead of rope

bindings on their fists. After World War II,

television introduced the sport to a larger

audience, and the sport gained an international

following. It is now practiced by hundreds of

thousands of people worldwide.

Muaythai fighters wear a combination of

boxing and martial arts equipment with some

ceremonial accessories. Where fighters once wore strips of horse hair, and in some cases,

hemp ropes or strips of cotton with ground glass on their fists and feet, they now wear

boxing gloves and cloth strips wrapped around

their upper arms. Fighters used to wear groin

guards made from tree bark, sea shells, or

coconut shell held in place by a strip of cloth.

Later, they wore a triangular-shaped red or blue

pillow, and later still, a groin box. In the 1930s,

kicking or kneeing the groin was banned, and

fighters donned the colorful red and blue boxing

shorts worn today.

Each muaythai bout begins with a short

ceremony with Buddhist rituals. Fighters remove

their bright red or blue ceremonial robes and

bow, pray, and walk around the ring, kissing and

bowing to the posts in each corner. They walk to

the center of the ring, remove their neck wreath

and ceremonial headband, and begin to stretch

with dance-like movements. When the bout

begins, the fighters wear only boxing gloves,

shorts, shoes, socks, mouth guard, and the cloth

strips on their arms.

Muaythai bouts feature five three-minute

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rounds with two-minute breaks in between.

During bouts, live musicians perform traditional

Thai music, a cacophony of sound dominated by

the taphon drum, finger cymbals, and an oboe-

like instrument called a pi. Judges determine the

winner based on how well fighters attack their

opponents and defend themselves. Winners are

awarded a trophy.

I enjoyed my first live muaythai match. I

saw amateur bouts between teen-aged fighters,

who went four rounds instead of five, and some

professional fighters in the lightweight divisions.

I was fascinating by the traditional muaythai

demonstration during intermission. Prices for the

Saturday night fights cost 2,000 Thai baht (about

$65) for ringside seats and 1,500 baht ($50) for

general admission (standing or sitting on the

concrete floor only). Getting unsuspecting

customers, mostly foreigners, to upgrade to

ringside seats was a trick the box office used to

fill seats. Those in general admission used chairs

and had fine views of the ring. The crowd was small but lively; more spectators poured in

later for the professional matches that were broadcast live on national television.

Although most muaythai fighters are male,

women also participate in the sport. Tradition

stipulates that women and men fight separately.

The ring in Lumpinee Boxing Stadium had a sign

that read, "Ladies Please Don't Touch the Stage."

If you're visiting Thailand for more than a

week, you might find watching a muaythai match

an interesting alternative to the usual tourist

activities. Thai boxing is an entertaining way to

experience an event ingrained in Thai culture.

M.G. Edwards is a writer of books and stories in the mystery, thriller and science fiction-fantasy

genres. He also writes travel adventures. He recently published a collection of short stories

called Real Dreams: Thirty Years of Short Stories available as an ebook and in print on

Amazon.com. His upcoming travel novel, Kilimanjaro: One Man’s Quest to Go Over the Hill,

will be available in March 2012. He lives in Bangkok, Thailand with his wife Jing and son Alex.

For more books or stories by M.G. Edwards, visit his web site at www.mgedwards.com or his

blog, World Adventurers. Contact him at me@mgedwards.com, on Facebook, on Google+, or

@m_g_edwards on Twitter.

© 2012 Brilliance Press. All rights reserved. No part of this work may be reproduced or

transmitted without the written consent of the author.