Muav Thai

It's the Art of Choice for Mixed Martial Artists Around the World, and It Can Be Just as Empowering for You!
For more than 15 years. Master Toddy's gym has been a martial arts restitution in Las Vegas. After the Ultimate Fighting Cham. '- ^-came the hr--~- " - in the sporting world and set up shop in his backyard, it din - mixed m--i many of whom were looking
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Interview and Photos by Robert W, Young

Why do so many MMA fighters chose muay Thai? Because they need a knockout weapon, A guy might hit his opponent 20 times and nothing happens. That's when he knows he has to change thingsfor example, that he has to change the way he punches because he's now wearing MMA gloves and needs to connect with his knuckles. It's the same with elbowsyou can see a fighter's head get knocked back with elbow strikes and nothing happens. It's not effective unless you do it with the right part of the elbow and with the right technique. That's why Trio Ortiz came to me to learn

how to do the elbow strike, Aftenward, he used it to cut everybody. For a tool to be good, it has to be sharp. Then it's easy to use it and win. If your weapon isn't sharp and you hit with it, you won't be effective. My job is to make tools sharp. Is there any conflict between the ancient art of muay Thai and the young sport of MMA? Muay Thai has been around for a long time. We've already figured out how to strike. We can figure out how to make our techniques work in MMA- We can make things easier for MMA fighters.

Is muay Thai punching bes\ for MMA, or is Western boxing better? Are they even different? Boxing is a little better because muay Thai requires a higher stance. In boxing, you can drop down and turn your body sideways. Let me rephrase that: Boxing isn't really better; it's better against a grappler. However, muay Thai punching as a whole works because in MMA, you're not limited to just punching. You have other weapons. The difference between boxing and muay Thai is that Thai boxers keep their feet ready to throw kicks and knees. Our posture keeps

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THAI FRONT KICK: Because of its extend-

us ready for combinations. In contrast, boxers hit, then jump in and grab hold of their opponentthat's why the boxing stance was developed. Wfien they're in it, they have only two weapons: their two hands. Muay Thai enables you to use other weapons such as your legs and knees. What part of punching is most often overlooked by MMA fighters? You have to make your wrists strong, and you have to hit with the knuckles. 0thenwise, your punches won't be effective. Everyone knows that muay Thai is No. 1 for elbow strikes. When you teach them for MMA. is it primarily standing elbows or elbows on the ground? We teach mostly stand-up eibows.

What's the secret to executing the most popular elbow strike, the or that follows a downward diagonal path to the opponent's face? We turn so we can slam the sharp part of our elbow into our opponent's face or eyes. Our way involves executing the strike so the bent wrist is in the pocket, or the center of the chest, when we make contact. At the same time, we exhale. Is there any way to tell if your opponent is good at throwing elbows short of letting him hit you with one, of course? Sometimes a fighter will keep his hands high because he wants you to come in and hit his bodywhich is when he'll hit you with an elbow or a knee.

One of Master Toddy's best-known students is mixed-martial arts standout Gina Carano. Until her loss to Chistiane "Cyborg" Santos in August 2009, she was MMA's most-talkedabout female fighter. "For the most part, she's doing very well," Toddy says. "She's still beautiful and you never see any other women who can hit as hard and sharpas Gina. She's a good ambassador, not just for my school but for women in general. She steals the show every time she fights. She brings recognition to the sport and makes women watch it. "And she's proof that if you're good at muay Thai you can become good at MMA." RWY

Is tfie elbow primarily used to cut an adversary or knock him out? There are two ways to use the technique. To cut, you drag your elbow across your opponent's face. It's best to aim for his cheektwne, nose or eyebrow. To knock fiim out, you go straight in with power, aiming for the jaw.

KMEE For maximum power. Master Toddy (top) teaches a knee s^rke that starts wi\ a raised body and eg (1-2). When r} Opponent's torso. Toddy s entire body is behind the blow (3). Note how he p/ns Cie man's le arm to his ch^t

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Confessions f a Muay Thai

"At first. I wasn't too keen about mixed martiai arts," Master Toddy admits. "It was a new sport, and it seemed to destroy the discipiine of the martial arts. Some fighters were running around teliing people that they didn't need to have a master and showing disrespect for others." He says he witnessed the attitude firsthand. "Some guys would walk into my gym, looking like they were ready to kili," he says. "Their attitude was different from the people who train in the traditional arts." As time went by, however, he ran into a few fighters who embodied a more traditional warrior spirit and showed the respect he was accustomed to. "So I started training them," he says. "Some of those men and women have become champions. They are great martial artists." RWY

What about the back elbow and spinning elbow? Are they used tn MMA? A lot of people use the back elbow, but the spinning elbow is risky because you must turn your back to your opponent. How are things different on the ground? The elbow strike changes because the angle of the force changes. You sit on top of your opponent and hit down. What most people do wrong is bend down and then hit the target. Instead, you should move your elbow first and then drop your body. That uses the energy of your whole body. What's something that few fighters know about the elbow strike?

To be most effective, the skin on your elbow has to be rough, like the worst sandpaper in the world. That way, it cuts. Do you teach knee strikes for MMA the same way you teach them tor muay Thai? No, in Thai boxing, we often use long knee strikes to stop an opponent, but in MMA, those techniques are too dangerous because your opponent can trap your leg. In MMA, the knee should always be delivered from the clinch, and it should move up. You aim for the face or chin In MMA, Attacking the thigh is OK, but I haven't seen anyone get knocked out with that technique, A shot to the inside ot the thigh can

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Stop a fighter from continuing, but it's rare. What about knee strikes on the ground? They work if you modify them. To generate power, you have to lift your leg into the air before you strike. That lets you put your whole body into it. When it comes to kicking, most martial artists would consider muay Thai to be king because of the shin kick. Is the shin Kick you see in MMA 100-percent muay Thai, or has it been modified for the cage? It's been modifiedwhich is sad. If it was 100-percent Thai boxing, the opponent wouldn't be standing afterward. The average MMA fighter can't take a strong roundhouse kick from a good Thai fighter. Because MMA fighters are often in a hurry lo go to the ground and do what they do bestwhich is grapplethey don't concentrate on perfect kicking technique. What are the prime targets for the Thai roundhouse? We slam our shins into the opponent's arm or body. If we hit the arm, he will start dropping his guard. If we kick the body, he'll start to lose power. If a person is watching an MMA match and sees a fighter get kicked in the arm, it's easy to think it's nothing, but it sounds like it can take a toll on him. It can, but I don't see a lot of good roundhouse kicks because the fighters are rushing to get to the ground. They're scared to use stand-up skills, so their kicks are just kicks, not muay Thai kicks. Do you think the crowd cares one way or the other about precision kicking? Yes. I believe people want to see more stand-up. It's more exciting to see knockouts than to watch grappling. That's why the advertisements for MMA events show stand-up fighting. It's why more people are coming to my gym to learn. In muay Thai, the roundhouse kick is also used to target the legs and the head, right? Yes. But you don't see a lot of muay Thai roundhouse kicks to the head in MMA matches because they're afraid of missing. They think that if they miss, they'll be off-balance. How u^ful is the Thai front kick in MMA? Very useful. Not a lot of people use it, though. If you find yourself facing a person who's good at the muay Thai front kick, be careful. It's very hard to grab. It can stop a lot of attacks such as the side kick, roundhouse kick, knee and punch. Mostly it's used to stop him when he's coming in, but it can also push him into the ropes or the cage, or set him up for another technique for your knockout technique. X v auUKM. RobiHi W. Young is the r editor of Biack Belt. ToseeMastr Todcfyin acon teaching the techniques of muay Jftai. visit t^ackbeetmag-com.

GROUND KICK: One of the variations of the round kick that Master Toddy be&de his of^nent The Thai boxer turns toward his foe arid raises his k\

the martial artist is on the ground hen slams his shin into the heavy bag (2).

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