Styles make fights. The different styles of Muay Thai were once confined to and characterized by specific regions: The North, The Northeast, The Central Region, and the South. Over the past few decades, several modern styles have emerged to reign supreme in the modern stadiums and at the top echelons of the sport:

Muay Maat (The Puncher’s Style)

A forward moving, heavy hitting style. The Muay Maat specialist relies mainly on punches, low kicks, and may even deploy elbows in specific situations. The Muay Maat is an exciting style to watch with heavy exchanges and a high volume of striking, this is also why many knockout artists tend to be Muay Maat specialists: Rodtang Jitmuangnon, Anuwat Kaewsamrit, & Liam Harrison.

Muay Tae (The Kicker’s Style)

A long-range style fighter who likes to rack up points and dish out damage with teeps and roundhouse kicks while using punches as a secondary weapon to setup their kick combinations. Muay Tae fighters have been responsible showing the devastating beauty, efficiency, and brutality of the Muay Thai roundhouse kick against all other fighting styles around the world. Famous Muay Tae fighters include Buakaw Banchamek (in his K1 days), Superlek Kiatmuu9, Singdam Kiatmuu9, Superbon, and the Jitmuangnon brothers Panpayak and Kiewpayak.

Muay Khao / Muay Plum (The Knee & Clinch Style)

A style that heavily emphasizes close range combat, a Muay Khao prefers to close the distance and drown his or her opponent in a barrage of knees, elbows, and clinch work. These fighters often have a huge gas tank and a solid constitution to outlast and outwork the opponent. The strongest Muay Khao / Muay Plum fighters are often able to counter the tricky Muay Femur style (up next!). Famous Muay Khao fighters include: Yodwicha (stadium version), Petchboonchu FA Group, and Dieselnoi.

Muay Femur (Technical / Tricky Style)

This is by far the most revered style in the sport, and draws huge crowds and hordes of gamblers to the stadiums. The Muay Femur stylist is a true master of all eight limbs. This fighter is evasive, tricky, and intelligent. He or she often possesses an impeccable sense of timing together with a wide arsenal of special techniques. Muay Femur fighters are typically defensive or counter fighters as they typically do not have the highest levels of power and constitution. They must therefore rely on speed, intelligence, and timing to dominate their opponents. For this very reason, the traditional answer to beating a Muay Femur style is to deploy a relentless Muay Khao style. The Muay Khao stylist will try to overwhelm a Muay Femur fighter with sheer volume and cardio, whereas the Muay Femur fighter will try to counter and evade the forward aggression in a classic bull vs matador showdown. Many of the greatest Muay Thai legends are Muay Femur stylists, these include: Saenchai, Lerdsila, Samart Payakaroon, Attachai, Lamnamoonlek Tded99, and Sangmanee (Sor Tienpo version).

Muay Fighter (Technical / Aggressive Style)

The aggressive, forward moving version of Muay Femur. These fighters have a tough constitution with the same technical qualities and fight IQ as a Muay Femur stylist. A Muay Fighter enjoys taking the fight to the opponent and pushing forward in an aggressive counter fighting manner. This often makes for exciting fights with high knockout ratios. Muay Fighter examples include Jonathan Haggerty, Yodwicha (modern version), and Sagat Petchyindee.

Muay Bouk (Crazy Style)

Perhaps the rarest style of all, a Muay Bouk fighter competes with a complete disregard for his or her own safety and in the absence of fear. These fighters are right at home in the middle of a bloodbath, soaking up every ounce of punishment while proceeding to dish it back tenfold. A Muay Bouk will often employ special techniques to do as much damage as possible. These include spinning elbows, spinning back kicks and flying knees. War is guaranteed when a Muay Bouk shows up to fight. The most notable Muay Bouk fighter and one of the most beloved fighters in all of Thailand is Seksan Or Kwanmuang – The Man Who Yields To No One.

We hope you enjoyed reading this segment regarding the different styles of Muay Thai. For the best gear to complement your training journey, check out www.primofightwear.com. If you’re interested in enhancing your Muay Thai training skills with world class instruction from Muay Thai legends, check out https://www.legendarystriking.com/ Wishing you more power and success.