Switching from Boxing to MT..

[TwoFistedPiston]

Hi my 1st post here. Im 19 and Ive been boxing for 9 years with over 50 amatuer fights at the highest level and i plan on switching to muay thai for afew fights atleast. Just wondering if the switch to MT is that big?? When watching MT fights Ive noticed, especially in the amatuers, the punching isnt great so I could have an advantage here more than likely. Im always in training for fights so my fitness is grand, i would just be working on kicking & knees and technique like the clinching etc.. Would 4 months of techniwque work be enough to go into my first MT fight??

 

[arnisador]

Good luck! Having the kicks/knees/elbows in there changes the game more than you might think. With your experience you might be OK, but take a while to see how defending these new attacks changes your stance, guard, etc. before deciding anything.

 

[TehEl1te]

I think you'll enjoy it. I love MT good luck to ya!

 

[David Weatherly]

One of the biggest changes for you will be mindset. You'll have to shift your thinking and work on integrating the fact that you suddenly have additional "weapons" in your arsenal.

Best of luck.

 

[Brian R. VanCise]

It is a change but I am sure you will enjoy it!

 

[TwoFistedPiston]

Yeah im thinking the hardest part will be defending against the kicks and a new stance and finding the right stance for myself!

Thanks to all!

 

[jks9199]

Hi my 1st post here. Im 19 and Ive been boxing for 9 years with over 50 amatuer fights at the highest level and i plan on switching to muay thai for afew fights atleast. Just wondering if the switch to MT is that big?? When watching MT fights Ive noticed, especially in the amatuers, the punching isnt great so I could have an advantage here more than likely. Im always in training for fights so my fitness is grand, i would just be working on kicking & knees and technique like the clinching etc.. Would 4 months of techniwque work be enough to go into my first MT fight??

There's more to the change than simply starting to kick/knee/elbow -- but I'm sure it's something you can do. Get some appropriate training and coaching, and I'm sure your ring experience will stand you in good stead.

Good luck!

 

[searcher]

I think you can havesome fun with it. I suggest you find someone that has ring experience and get them to help you out.


Just remember, there will be techniques coming from the floor now. Sounds a little strange, but they can catch you off-guard.

 

[Akira]

Yes you have an advantage, but also some disadvantages. Here at my gym we regularly do boxing sparring as well as muay thai and the main differences I've noticed are-

Stance - boxing stance is a lot wider

Guard - Muay thai guard is higher than boxing

Defence - Boxers duck and weave a lot more, whereas you just can't do that the same way in muay thai. One boxer I spar with regularly keeps ducking under my punches and if I'm being aggressive he'll cover up and keep his head down. In muay thai you couldn't do that because of knees. You're going to have to get used to defending you entire body, not just your head and upper torso.

Movement - You'll find the boxers cover a lot greater distance when they move or dodge punches, muay thai is very quick with small movements

Conditioning - This is where you're going to be at the biggest disadvantage. Apart from the additional techniques to learn (elbows, knees, kicks), there is a lot of conditioning that muay thai fighters have to do.

Clinch/grappling - This is *very* technical, and it really shows when someone is inexperienced. As mentioned above, you not only have to watch out for and get used to knees, but be very careful of your opponents elbows. This will probably take you the longest to get good at out of all the additional techniques.

Those are biggest differences I can think of, but many people have made the transition so don't be discouraged. Good luck, and keep us informed of your progress.

 

[Jarrod G.]

Having a strong boxing technique will be a huge advantage in switching to muay thai. But you will have to correct some things that have been drilled into you. Mainly bobbing/weaving. I have trained with alot of ex-boxers and they all seem to have the same short-comings, mainly that if you throw a punch/kick combination at them, they tend to move their head down into the kicks coming from the floor. Muay thai has very little head movement for exactly this reason. also, boxers tend to have a hard time switching from ranged to clinch techniques. in muay thai you have to be ready to switch from punches to knees/elbows at anytime. In boxing the only real range change is straight boxing to dirty boxing but muay thai has kicks to punches to elbows to knees/grappling. All of these things should be focused on if you are serious about making a switch. If you think that your boxing experience will carry you through a real muay thai fight, I advise you to forget it. But if you spend some time (at least 6 months) focusing only on those aspects of muay thai that are differnt than boxing you should be ok and have a huge advantage due to your strong boxing techniques.

 

[Slihn]

Hi my 1st post here. Im 19 and Ive been boxing for 9 years with over 50 amatuer fights at the highest level and i plan on switching to muay thai for afew fights atleast. Just wondering if the switch to MT is that big?? When watching MT fights Ive noticed, especially in the amatuers, the punching isnt great so I could have an advantage here more than likely. Im always in training for fights so my fitness is grand, i would just be working on kicking & knees and technique like the clinching etc.. Would 4 months of techniwque work be enough to go into my first MT fight??

Man! I think you would do awesome at Muay Thai. Most people who are former boxers that convert to Muay Thai do really well!! Being at ex boxer you already have the punching skills , slips and weaves , ring strageties , footwork and movement. We have an ex boxer at our gym and I have seen him crush both of his opponets in his last two fights.

About 4 months , well it depends on you, how many days that you can train, how fast you pick up on it , and other factors, just make sure that your raw technique is squared away though because the counter for a good boxer is long distance kicking , then waiting for your opponet to come in and then countering with the clinch.

 

[jarrod]

boxing is to striking arts what wrestling is to grappling; it's not complete, & you don't HAVE to have it, but man, it sure helps a lot.

jf

 

[DeadlyShins]

I agree with Jarrod...it will certainly give you a great "jumping off point". Just be sure to try and not slip back into your straight boxing when the pressure is on. Work hard and I'm sure the transition will be smooth for you. Good luck and welcome to Muay Thai!