Muay Thai is originally a national form of martial arts in which fighting is done with bare hands . It is a tradition to organize various Muay Thai competitions during festivals. Today it is a world-famous sport that is practiced by thousands of people. In Thailand it is a wildly popular sport and in all provinces there is a large stadium where competitions are held.
A Muay Thai match is held in an almost square ring that is not more than 120 cm above the ground. Each side of the ring must be between 5.70 and 8.20 meters. The ring must be closed off with 4 ropes that may be between 4.90 and 7.30 meters long on each side of the ring. The ropes must be supported by 4 corner posts and their diameter may not exceed 2 cm. The ropes must be wrapped with leather or soft linen to protect the fighters. Outside the ring, the ground must be covered with soft mats. No one is allowed within a radius of 1 meter outside the ring except the caretakers, judges and doctor.
Thai boxing equipment:
If a match is held in a stadium, the following items must be present:
- stopwatch
- gong
- alarm bell
- boxing gloves of different sizes that meet the guidelines
- water bottles
- panties, bandages, bits and head cords
Rules of Muay Thai competitions:
- Competitions in Thailand must always have government permission
- A Muay Thai match lasts no longer than 5 rounds and a round lasts a maximum of 3 minutes
- There is a 2 minute break between rounds
- Fighters must wear boxing gloves and they must not weigh more than 6 ounces (172 grams) - Exceptions:
- Fighters must have a doctor's note
- Fighters must be weighed naked and are then placed in a class
- Fighters are not allowed to use Vaseline
- Fighters are not allowed to wear shoes and t-shirts but the use of a toque is mandatory
Each fighter is allowed to have 2 caregivers in his corner
Decision of a Muay Thai match:
The outcome of a match can be determined in five ways:
- KO (when a fighter goes down from a punch from his opponent and cannot get up within 10 seconds)
- TKO (a decision by the referee when a fighter is no longer able to continue fighting)
- Surrender (when a fighter quits the match)
- Disqualification (if a fighter commits a serious foul)
- The judges give their points and the fighter with the most points wins
Counting points in Thai boxing:
Judges have the difficult task of awarding points to punches and kicks. Awarding a point depends on the effectiveness, target, power and impact of the punch or kick. Points are also given for defensive power but also for offensive power. If both fighters have the same number of points, the most offensive fighter wins.
Awarding Fouls in Thai Boxing:
There are a number of things that are prohibited in the ring:
- talk or behave inappropriately
- deliberately using the head to hit the opponent
- attacks on the eyes, pulling of hair and spitting
- to deliberately bring down the opponent and kick him in the process
- deliberately kicking a downed opponent
- to hit an opponent when he is hanging in the ropes
- avoid the attacks by hiding behind the referee
- deliberately kicking the opponent in the groin
Thai boxing weight classes (Thailand):
- Mini Flyweight not heavier than 105 Ibs. (47.6 kg)
- Junior Flyweight not to exceed 108 lbs. (49 kg)
- Flyweight not heavier than 112 lbs. (50.8 kg)
- Junior Bantamweight not to exceed 115 lbs. (52.2 kg)
- Bantamweight heavier than 118 lbs. (53.5 kg)
- Junior Featherweight not exceeding 122 lbs. (55.3 kg)
- Featherweight not exceeding 126 lbs. (57.2 kg)
- Junior Lightweight not heavier than 130 Ibs. (59 kg)
- Lightweight not exceeding 135 lbs. (61.2 kg)
- Junior Welterweight not to exceed 140 Ibs. (63.5 kg)
- Welterweight not heavier than 147 lbs. (66.7 kg)
- Junior Middleweight not exceeding 154 Ibs. (69.9 kg)
- Middleweight not heavier than 160 Ibs. (72.6 kg)
- Light Heavyweight not exceeding 175 Ibs. (79.4 kg)
- Heavy weight heavier than 175 Ibs. (+79.4 kg)
