Best at Muay Thai

[scb]

What is the best in Muay Thai in your opinion?

[Hardball]

Muay Thai stands out because of it's conditioning. I can find all of the above techniques in most systems.

[george stando]

Its not just the techniques nor the conditioning which are great of course, its how the system is built and put together. The use of the shin is something very unique to the few styles who perfected them in that region and really put to outstanding use. The use of thai pads, bellypads, all unique stuff that came from the system. It offers so much in a tight package.

[Hardball]

Their shins have to be "Conditioned" before they can fully unload with them?

[Ghost]

clinch.........

[george stando]

Their shins have to be "Conditioned" before they can fully unload with them?

Yes, of course but its still a specific progressive technique to the system and how it used and when. If its just conditioning then you are void of the technique usage. Conditioning is one part of the system as conditioning is a part of mma/vale tudo.

But I essentially agree the progessive conditioning and body tempering is one of its most wonderful tools

[fire cobra]

Yeah its the whole package with Muay Thai or you just dont get it,you cant take a bit from it and stick it with a bit from something else,its the technique and the way the technique is trained,its the attitude and philosophy of the art, its the culture and the heart of the people,all those things and more is what makes Muay Thai a great art science and sport.

[ebrown99]

I say think it has alot to do with conditioning. The ability to throw bone crushing kicks and devastaing knee/elbow strikes are great but you see other styles that use similar strikes, or may even try to incoperate muay thai strikes into their own individual style, but the conditioning is like none I have ever experienced.

[Tom Yum]

Strengths

1. Physical conditioning - muaythai fighters, like other combat athletes spend alot of time doing endurance, cardio and power training. Looking at camps in Thailand, conditioning can involve hill sprints, endurance runs, skipping rope, calisthenics, light weight training, swimming, shadow boxing - basically exerting yourself and being as explosive as possible for as long as possible.

2. Weapons - trained muaythai fighters kick with the same power as a swung baseball bat. Volunteer to hold pads for a pro-fighters. Muaythai fighters also have the hardest knee strikes. One or two well placed knee kicks can end a fight fast. Some muaythai fighters can put together good punching combinations, allthough they are not pro-boxers but they are versatile with their elbows and head-butting.

In muaythai, strikes are also blocks. Examples of this include Elephant breaking the tusk (using your knee to break the attackers kicking leg), defanging the snake (elbow strikes against the fist and biceps) etc. - but these are moves in traditional muaythai

Add to it clinch work from hell. Once you're locked in, its hard to get out. Other stylists do not understand the clinch. Hell, I don't understand the clinch - once the MT fighter has those vice grips around your head you won't have a leg to stand one -as most martial artists know, you control the head, you control the body.

All too often, you see stylists practice clinch defense against someone holding a weak, static clinch. That's like practicing against an overextended, reverse punch...

3. Repetition/Reinforcement - lots of pad drills, heavybag, sparring etc. Being able to fight while being struck at. Excellent training drills too.

Weaknesses

1. Upright stance - higher COG - more succeptible to takedowns, unless crosstrained in grappling. This is why sanshou fighters can wear down and take out muaythai fighters who may be more skilled.

2. Boxing- boxing level of muaythai fighters is inconsistent -some MT fighters can put together explosive punches in bunches, others only use their jab, sometimes a cross and a non-existant hook as set up - again requires cross training, but they can overcome this by being better at placing kicks and fighting from the clinch.

3. Weapons (edged/blunt impact/projectile) - the closest thai weapon art that I can think of is krabi krabong. Not sure how well it integrates with open hand muaythai - info. gap there.

Opportunites

1. Adapting muaythai to other fighting environments - terrain, like soft sand can f-up your balance and slow down your kicks, rocky terrain as well. Fighting in shallow water.

2. Combining arts - Some arts compliment muaythai's hard striking nature.

Phillipine/Indonesian arts could suppliment MT training with more access to edged, impact weapons and softer, more deceptive infighting abilities

Grappling - Increases the MT fighters chances against grappling.

Chinese arts - especially those that have good infighting/controlling techniques but are not too heavily stance dependent.