Tiger Muay Thai
Est. | 2003[1] |
---|---|
Founded by | Sean Douglas = William McNamara[2] |
Primary trainers | Phet Chaimanee (Muay thai) Alex Schild (BJJ) Rafael Fiziev (Striking) Eric Uresk (MMA/Wrestling) |
Prominent fighters | Roger Huerta Alexander Volkanovski[3] Rafael Fiziev Cyrus Washington[4] Dan Hooker[5] Loma Lookboonmee Dave Leduc Kai Kara-France Valentina Shevchenko Brad Riddell Shannon Wiratchai Mairbek Taisumov Anissa Meksen[6] |
Headquarters | Phuket, Thailand |
Address | 7 35 Soi Ta-iad, Chalong |
Location | Phuket, Thailand |
Training facilities | Phuket, Thailand San Sai District, Chiang Mai, Thailand |
Website | Tiger Muay Thai |
The Tiger Muay Thai gym is a Thai mixed martial arts and muay thai training facility located in Phuket, Thailand. It has several prominent competitors such as UFC champions Petr Yan, Alexander Volkanovski and Valentina Shevchenko.
History[]
William McNamara – an American teaching English in Darasamuth Catholic School – had previously owned a gym in Phuket consisting of only one ring to serve his muay thai training purposes.[7][8] The gym gained popularity, so with help from investors he founded Tiger Muay Thai in remarkably larger premises in 2003.[7][8] Subsequently, mixed martial arts program was added to the repertoire by McNamara.[9]
Since 2013, the gym has been arranging annual Fight Team tryouts where the best applicants receive scholarships to mixed martial arts and muay thai programs.[10] Among the tryout winners are the gym's MMA head coach-to-be George Hickman, Kai Kara-France, Dan Hooker, Loma Lookboonmee and Casey O'Neill.
In 2015, the gym was sold to Thai businessmen and one of them – Viwat Sakulrat – became the managing director of the gym.[7][9] It has continued to grow and is one of the world's most prominent muay thai gyms.[9]
In July 2021, Hickman brothers announced they are leaving the team after an amicable split.[11]
Gyms[]
While the original Tiger Muay Thai in Chalong, Phuket remains the headquarters, they opened a new facility to San Sai District, Chiang Mai in 2013.[12]
In 2019, they opened Tiger Muay Thai Beachside in Chalong.[13]
Notable fighters[]
- Petr Yan, a UFC Bantamweight Champion
- Alexander Volkanovski, a UFC Featherweight Champion
- Valentina Shevchenko, a UFC Women's Flyweight Champion
- Antonina Shevchenko
- Dan Hooker
- Rafael Fiziev
- Loma Lookboonmee, the first Thai mixed martial artist in the UFC
- Shannon Wiratchai
- Roger Huerta
- Cyrus Washington
- Brad Riddell
- Kai Kara-France
- Timofey Nastyukhin
- Dave Leduc, a Canadian Lethwei fighter and a WLC Cruiserweight Champion
- Anissa Meksen, a French kickboxer and Glory Women's Super Bantamweight Champion
- Mairbek Taisumov
- Alexey Kunchenko
External links[]
- Tiger Muay Thai on Instagram
- Tiger Muay Thai on Facebook
- Tiger Muay Thai on Twitter
- Official website
References[]
- ^ "Kru Phet - Tiger Muay Thai Trainer". Tiger Muay Thai. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
- ^ Rob Cox (November 14, 2020). "Tiger Muay Thai: the Phuket powerhouse that became a global fitness destination". asianmma.com.
- ^ "Team TMT Fighter Alex Volkanovski gets his shot in the UFC". Tiger Muay Thai. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
- ^ "Penthouse Magazine runs article on Tiger Muay Thai's Cyrus Washington". Tiger Muay Thai. 12 October 2010.
- ^ "Congrats to the Figh Team Tryout 2016 winners & welcome to Tiger Muay Thai". Tiger Muay Thai. 9 April 2016.
- ^ https://www.tigermuaythai.com/tmt-fighter-meksen-anissa-just-signed-with-one-championship
- ^ a b c "Tiger Muay Thai Review". muaythaicitizen.com. September 18, 2020.
- ^ a b "The History & Evolution of Tiger Muay Thai". Tiger Muay Thai.
- ^ a b c Frances Watthanaya (April 26, 2020). "Tiger Muay Thai's Rise From Humble Gym To Global Juggernaut". ONE Championship.
- ^ "Calling All Fighters! Apply for 2014 Fight Team Tryouts now!". Tiger Muay Thai. February 4, 2014.
- ^ "George and Frank Hickman leave Tiger Muay Thai". asianmma.com. July 3, 2021.
- ^ Wannakorn Moolkam (October 18, 2012). "Tiger Muay Thai – massive Muay Thai gym to open in Chiang Mai". chiangmaicitylife.com.
- ^ "Tiger Muay Thai Beachside, our beautiful 2nd Gym located next to Chalong Beach, is opening on the 1st of February 2019!". Tiger Muay Thai. January 9, 2019.
- Mixed martial arts training facilities
- Kickboxing training facilities
- Kickboxing in Thailand
- Companies based in Phuket Province