One of the things you should definitely do while hanging out in Bangkok is get seats to a Muay Thai tournament. This sport, popularized in the movie  Ong-Bak and its excellent lead actor Tony Jaa, is a brutal martial arts that utilizes not just fists and shins, but elbows and knees, as well. These multiple contact points gives Muay Thai its title the Art of Eight Limbs. Muay contests have become integral to local festivals and celebrations, held inside temples, and even used to entertain kings.

Each boxer enters the tournament hall wearing a mong kon (a sacred headband) and a pra jiad (sacred armband). The headband is believed to shower luck to the wearer as it has been blessed by a monk of the boxer’s instructor. A match begins with the two opponents going through a spiritual wai khru, a ceremony to thank each combant’s trainers, spirits, the boxing ring and finally, the sport itself. After the wai khru, the two go into ram muay, a dance which demonstrates the skills and style of each practitioner. These rituals bring in good luck, protection, respect, and a reminder for a fair and honorable fight, and all these things are needed in the minutes ahead. The music, a mix of traditional Thai songs performed on the piphat (Thai flute) and pii (percussion and cymbals), gets faster and louder in time with the tempo of the match. The crowd does its part in cheering on the fighters. The boxers battle it out during five 3-minute rounds. When the bells rings at the end of the round, the two boxers touch each other’s gloves and embrace in a sign of brotherhood.

There are a number of boxing stadiums around the capital, but the newest and most modern is Bangkok Boxing Stadium in Huaykwang, where matches are held every Saturday between 2:30pm and 6:30pm. Other popular venues are the Lumpini Boxing Stadium (fights are held on Tuesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays at 6:30pm) and the Ratchadamnoen Boxing Stadium (on other days). To be safe, by tickets directly from authorized sellers in the stadium’s ticket booths. A night of Muay Thai usually has less than 10 matches, but some of these will be viciously short. Seats will be more expensive at ringside, and the informal gambling area is contained in the second tier. Visitors are warned to watch their hand movements, as this can be misinterpreted to be betting gestures.

Posted in Events, Thailand

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