Tiger Muay Thai

Tiger Muay Thai 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.

Tiger Muay Thai
Est.2003[1]
Primary trainersPhet Chaimanee (Muay thai)
Alex Schild (BJJ)
Rafael Fiziev (Striking)
Eric Uresk (MMA/Wrestling)
Joseph Henle (MMA)
Prominent fightersRoger Huerta
Alexander Volkanovski[2]
Rafael Fiziev
Cyrus Washington[3]
Dan Hooker[4]
Loma Lookboonmee
Dave Leduc
Kai Kara-France
Valentina Shevchenko
Brad Riddell
Shannon Wiratchai
Mairbek Taisumov
Khamzat Chimaev[5]
Anissa Meksen[6]
HeadquartersPhuket, Thailand
Address7 35 Soi Ta-iad, Chalong
LocationPhuket, Thailand
Training facilitiesPhuket, Thailand
San Sai District, Chiang Mai, Thailand
WebsiteTiger Muay Thai

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 the help of 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 Kai Kara-France, Dan Hooker, Dave Leduc, Loma Lookboonmee and Casey O'Neill.[11]

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, MMA coaches George and Frank Hickman announced they were leaving the team after an amicable split.[12] In April 2022, they opened their own gym called Bangtao Muay Thai & MMA which trained UFC champions such as Alexander Volkanovski, Jiří Procházka and Zhang Weili.[13]

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.[14]

In 2019, they opened Tiger Muay Thai Beachside in Chalong.[15]

In 2023, Tiger Muay Thai is set to open a new location in Bali, Indonesia.[16]

Notable fighters

References
  1. "Kru Phet - Tiger Muay Thai Trainer". Tiger Muay Thai. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
  2. "Team TMT Fighter Alex Volkanovski gets his shot in the UFC". Tiger Muay Thai. Retrieved 2020-12-12.
  3. "Penthouse Magazine runs article on Tiger Muay Thai's Cyrus Washington". Tiger Muay Thai. 12 October 2010.
  4. "Congrats to the Figh Team Tryout 2016 winners & welcome to Tiger Muay Thai". Tiger Muay Thai. 9 April 2016.
  5. "Huge Update on UFC Star Khamzat Chimaev's Training and 2023 Campaign". 25 January 2023.
  6. "TMT Fighter Meksen Anissa just signed with ONE Championship!". 25 August 2020.
  7. "Tiger Muay Thai Review". muaythaicitizen.com. September 18, 2020.
  8. "The History & Evolution of Tiger Muay Thai". Tiger Muay Thai.
  9. Frances Watthanaya (April 26, 2020). "Tiger Muay Thai's Rise From Humble Gym To Global Juggernaut". ONE Championship.
  10. "Calling All Fighters! Apply for 2014 Fight Team Tryouts now!". Tiger Muay Thai. February 4, 2014.
  11. "Congrats to the Fight Team Tryout 2016 winners & welcome to Tiger Muay Thai". Tiger Muaythai. 9 April 2016.
  12. "George and Frank Hickman leave Tiger Muay Thai". asianmma.com. July 3, 2021.
  13. "'Training in paradise': Bangtao MMA gym changing the game in Phuket". South China Morning Post. 2022-04-30. Retrieved 2022-10-09.
  14. Wannakorn Moolkam (October 18, 2012). "Tiger Muay Thai – massive Muay Thai gym to open in Chiang Mai". chiangmaicitylife.com.
  15. "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.
  16. "Tiger Muay Thai to open new gym in Bali". Asian MMA. 2023-06-09. Retrieved 2023-10-26.
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