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Mixed martial arts training facility in Phuket, Thailand From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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.
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Est. | 2003[1] |
---|---|
Primary trainers | Phet Chaimanee (Muay thai) Alex Schild (BJJ) Rafael Fiziev (Striking) Eric Uresk (MMA/Wrestling) Joseph Henle (MMA) |
Prominent fighters | Roger 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] |
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 |
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]
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]
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