MUAY THAI ACTION FROM THAILAND

MUAY THAI STRAIGHT FROM THE SOURCE

By: Dominic Lavin

All photos courtesy of Rob Cox from Kaewsamrit.

Friday March 16, 2007 saw four fighters from Jitti Gym Bangkok travel to Ayutthaya–the ancient capital of Thailand–to compete in the WPMF promotion organized by Mr. Chayanum of Patong Stadium, Phuket.

First up was Alex James from Leicester who rode in on the crest of four unbeaten fights and bravely took on a Turkish fighter from Rompo Gym who outweighed him by around 4 kilos. From a technical point of view, Alex performed impeccably, however his opponent’s weight showed through. After two knock downs the referee intervened in round three to give Alex his first defeat in 5 fights.

Frank Hofsetter was Jitti’s second representative. His diligence and technical competence saw him defeat Yoshi from America in round four. After a sluggish first round Frank asserted himself in round two with a solid left jab and knee and secured himself a 10:9 score with his left elbow. In round 3 Frank cut Yoshi’s left eye with his jab and secured the round with his right hand and knee. After a textbook backfist in round four, the referee intervened and awarded Frank his just desserts.

Top of the bill was Liam Harrison of Jitti Gym and Bad Company Gym in Leeds England, defending his WPMF World Title against the Iranian Masod from Rompo Gym.

Masod opened the fight confidently from the southpaw stance and the pair traded jabs and roundhouses equally in round one. Round two saw an exciting exchange of low kicks and clinching where Liam’s retaliations gave him the advantage. In round 3 Liam’s strength took hold and Masod was obviously troubled by Liam’s counterattacking style. Masod visibly started to run out of ideas, and despite an encounter with the canvas, Liam happily took the round. In round four, Liam’s left hand found Masod’s chin and knocked him down. Bravely, Masod took the count, but an easily repeated left saw him wiped out, and Liam happily retained his belt.

Ben Seddon from Tiger Camp in Leeds was Jitti’s final representative. For a novice Ben showed an admirable degree of composure, however his lack of experience against an obviously more educated opponent was more than he could overcome, and despite a brave show Ben was stopped by a low kick in round 3.

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