Muay Thai - Sport of the Future

by Anish Kapur
If you are like me, you are extremely happy to see that Muay Thai has been getting more and more popular over the last few years. When a growth in popularity occurs, one of the first questions that come to mind is “who or what is responsible for kicking off this trend?” Was it the remnants of the “kung fu fighting” craze that swept the country? No. Was it those action-packed karate movie, with great characters, like Karate Kid’s “Daniel Larusso”, Rush’s Hour’s “Lee”, and Road House’s “Wade Garrett”? It probably wasn’t, seeing as how you probably ended up googling a bunch of those names. Before you go insane trying to figure it out, don’t worry baby birds, I’m about to throw up whatever you need right into your mouth.

There is only one person who is responsible for all of this.

JOHN. CUSACK.

I’m sure a lot of you are in disbelief and need a second to collect yourselves, so feel free to do so. Now that your jaws are no longer at the verge of being unhinged, we can get through this together. In 1989, Mr. Cusack starred in a classic American film, Say Anything, which brought us all many iconic moments of American cinema. The most recognizable to the general public is the scene where he lifts a boombox over his head (a precursor to crossfit?) while playing “In Your Eyes” by Peter Gabriel. In the film, John Cusack’s character, Lloyd Dobler, is introduced to his love interest’s father before taking her out on a date. At this time, he assures him that his daughter will be safe within a matter of seconds by saying, “I’m an athlete so I rarely drink. Kerr-kickboxing, you ever heard of kickboxing? Sport of the future? Don the Dragon Wilson? Benny "the Jet" Uriquez? Mercy Mess on the Champions of Sport? I can see by your face, no. My point is, you can relax because your daughter will be safe with me for the next 7 to 8 hours, sir". BAM. Situation handled. We all know that no father in the world is going to turn down that kind of protection.

Yes, I know Muay Thai and kickboxing arent the same but I am pretty sure cusak said kickboxing over Muay Thai because as many of us have experienced when you say Muay Thai you normally get a blank stare back. Sure, he had to dumb it down for the general public, but look at those shin pads and you'll know what the real deal is almost instantly.

Other than that prime example, there are other scenes where Mr. Dobler can be see training against a heavy bag, teaching his nephew how to yell and expel air on each hit, and sparring to the point of a solid bloody nose. He refers to kickboxing as the sport of the future, and hell, which one of us as muay thai fans can deny that? He even goes on to say, while at his girlfriend’s house for dinner, that he rejects the notions of trying to go on a traditional career path and is going to try and dedicate his life to kickboxing and spending times doing the things he loves with the people he loves. The guy knows his history, his trainers, and wants to promote the art, and did it while most of us reading this were young enough to just be able to discover which way was up.

He kicks some ass, gets the girl, and stands in the face of people who want to hold him back, so let’s just call it as it is; there isn’t a better spokesman for the industry, and frankly, I wouldn’t want anyone else. Lastly, Cusack even goes as far as to mention kickboxing again in the movie Grosse Point Blank, but that’s just another graceful nod to the fine art we love.

So, next time you see Mr. Cusack in a movie beating up someone, being some rom-com hero, reading the dictionary, or whatever the hell he gets upto these days, be sure to throw him a big “oooohhayyy”…especially if it’s in a crowded movie theater. He deserves at least that much.

" A career? I've thought about this quite a bit sir and I would have to say considering what's waiting out there for me, I don't want to sell anything, buy anything or process anything as a career. I dont want to sell anything bought or processed or buy anything sold or processed or repair anything sold, bought or processed as a career. I dont want to do that. My father's in the army. He wants me to join, but I can't work for that corporation, so what I've been doing lately is kick-boxing, which is a new sport...as far as career longevity, I dont really know. I cant figure it all out tonight, sir, so I'm just gonna hang with your daughter." - Lloyd Dobler

Anish "Alex Berrios" Kapur is the newest contributor to Muay Thai Authority. He is currently a medical student, doing his clinical rotations in the city of Baltimore, and working his way towards securing a residency in the near future. After spending years as a world traveler and international lover, Anish finally decided to settle down for the greater good and go to med school. The Dos Equis "Worlds Most Interesting Man" character is based on Anish. The movie Gladiator was originally titled Anish; although the name was ultimately changed it was a close re-enactment of a stretch in Anish's life in which he went back in time in his DeLorean. His time traveling adventures were also made into a movie which starred that Michael J. Fox guy. Saenchai Sor. Saenchai at one point in his career also fought under the name Saenchai Sor. Anish. So we are pretty lucky to have Anish writing for us and bringing his awesome sense of humor. Sport of the Future baby.