Aikpracha to Make Glory Kickboxing Debut

Aikpracha Meenayothin is set to make his Glory debut at their number 14 event in Zagreb, Croatia. The Muay Thai fighter will be facing established kickboxer Albert Krauss under Glory rules. 

The Thai fighter is known for his relentless style, always moving forward, while bombarding his opponents with heavy strikes. Strong with his elbows, Aikpracha will be forced to fight without them under Glory rules, but should nevertheless be expected to bring the fight to Krauss.

The March 8th Glory 14 event marks the first event of the 2014 calendar, as the organization steadily makes their way across the globe.

Updated Fight Card:

GLORY 14

Mirco Cro Cop vs. Remy Bonjasky

Andie Ristie vs. Ky Hollenbeck

GLORY 14 Middleweight Contender Tournament
Jason Wilnis vs. Sahak Paparyan
Robert Thomas vs. Dustin Jacoby

Super Fight Series
Michael Duut vs. Igor Jukovic

Shemsi Beqiri vs. Murthel Groenhart
Karapet Kareptyan vs. Artur Kyshenko 
Albert Krauss vs. Aikpracha Meenayothin

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Challenger MuayThai Fight Series 9 - 'Fight to Finish' Results

Canada's Challenger Muay Thai Fight Series 9 "Fight to Finish" had their 2014 opening event Friday, January 24th, featuring a main event of Hakeem Dawodu vs. Junpai Hirai. This fight was fast at the start with quick exchanges by both fighters, ending with Dawodu unloading a barrage of strikes that would TKO Hirai. Dawodu is expected to venture in MMA, but not without interest in Muay Thai bouts with Matt Embree, Kevin Ross, Sean Kearney, and Malaipet.

Results:
Hakeem Dawodu def. Junpai Hirai via TKO in Rd. 1
Mark MacKinnon def. Elmer Waterhen via TKO in Rd. 3
Scott MacKenzie def. Shigemune Omori via TKO in Rd. 3
Todd Laramie def. Ethan Doucette via TKO in Rd. 3
Hasman Sandhu def. Blake Weigel via Decision
Sarah Hoedlmoser def. Hope Quinn via Decision
John Nguyen def. Khris Collins via TKO in Rd. 2
Steve Mann vs. James Nelson ends in No Contest
Javier Ortega def. Karlando White via Split Decision

K-1 World MAX set for Azerbaijan

K-1 is set for its World MAX Final Four event, in which Buakaw, Sung Hyung Lee, Shane Campbell, and Enriko Kehl will compete in the February 23rd to qualify for the finals. The event is set for Azerbaijan where 12 fights are slated to take place with 24 fighters from across the globe.

Fight Card:

63kg: Amil Sahmarzade vs. Zakaria Zougarry
83kg: Ruslan Kobzev vs. Dennis Matthew
72kg: Babek Rustamov vs. Miodrag Olar
71kg: Alim Nabiev vs. Chad Sugden
70kg: Ziya Bayramov vs. TBA
70kg: Ismat Agazade vs. Cedric Manhoef
85kg: Samet Kesser vs. Lazar Daniel
72.5kg: Tural Bayramov vs. Mukai Maromo
70kg: Maximo Suarez vs. TBA
+100kg: Agalar Sadikhzade vs. George Colin
K-1 World MAX Final Four: Shane Campbell vs. Enriko Kehl
K-1 World MAX Final Four: Buakaw Banchamek vs. Sung Hyung Lee

Glory 14 Co-Main Event Change and Updated Fight Card

Glory 14, set for Zagreb, Croatia has undergone changes to their co-main event. Originally set for Nieky Holzken vs. Marc De Bont, the bout will now feature Andie Ristie vs. Ky Hollenbeck.  Both fighters wield an unpredictable style, making for an interesting and exciting matchup.

Andie Ristie last defeated both Robin Van Roosmalen and Giorgio Petrosyan in Glory's Lightweight Tournament in New York City. His convincing knock-out victories against these fighters, though viewed as possible, were not expected. Ristie definitely made a solid statement with his performance.

Ky Hollenbeck last defeated Warren Stevelmans by using his unorthodox style to outpoint the South African fighter.

Updated Fight Card:

GLORY 14

Mirco Cro Cop vs. Remy Bonjasky

Andie Ristie vs. Ky Hollenbeck

GLORY 14 Middleweight Contender Tournament
Jason Wilnis vs. Sahak Paparyan
Robert Thomas vs. Dustin Jacoby

Super Fight Series
Michael Duut vs. Igor Jukovic

Shemsi Beqiri vs. Murthel Groenhart
Karapet Kareptyan vs. Artur Kyshenko

Monte-Carlo Fighting Masters Assembles Stacked Card

Monte-Carlo Fighting Masters, a Monaco based company, puts forward a stacked card for their June 14, 2014 in Monte Carlo. 7 WMC World Championship Title bouts are set for the date, which includes fighters Buakaw, Fabio Pinca, Saenchai, Damien Alamos, Simon Marcus, Thai Ekkarit, amongst others.

All bouts are set for full-rules Muay Thai.

Fight Card:
Buakaw vs. Fabio Pinca
Saenchai vs. Yetkin Ozkul
Damien Alamos vs. Thai Ekkarit
Abdallah Mabel vs. Berneung
Yohan Lidon vs. Alex Harris
Simon Marcus vs. Artem Levin
Artem Vakhitov vs. Dzianis Hancharonak

Glory 14 Tournament and Super Fight Details

Glory 14 set for Zagreb, Croatia March 8, 2014 will feature a Middleweight Contender Tournament with fighters Jason Wilnis, Sahak Paparyan, Robert Thomas, and Dustin Jacoby. The tournament format remains a staple of the promotion and continues here as a featured portion of Glory's 14th event. Also announced is a super fight in the light heavyweight division between Michael Duut and Igor Jukovi. As previously announced, the event will be headlined by two kickboxing legends in Mirko Cro Cop vs. Remy Bonjasky.

GLORY 14

Mirco Cro Cop vs. Remy Bonjasky

Marc DeBonte vs. Nieky Holzken

GLORY 14 Middleweight Contender Tournament
Jason Wilnis vs. Sahak Paparyan
Robert Thomas vs. Dustin Jacoby

Super Fight Series
Michael Duut vs. Igor Jukovic

Thai Boxe Mania set for January 25th in Turin, Italy

Thai Boxe Mania will return on January 25, 2014, featuring Sittichai Sitsongpeenong of Thailand and Chingiz Allazov of Belarus. Other fights set to take place at the event include Roberto Cocco vs. Yoann Kongolo and Warren Stevelmans vs. Yuri Bessmertny.

 

Fight Card:
Roberto Cocco vs. Yoann Kongolo
Yuri Bessmertny vs. Warren Stevelmans
Yannis El Hajaoui vs. Corrado Sestito
Lucian Danilencu vs. Ryou Todak
Paolo Fiorio vs. Mustafa Haida
Fabio Siciliani vs. Orgest Farriuku
Davide Longoni vs. Paterini
Marco RE vs. Filippo Solheid
Shan Cangelosi vs. D'Angelo
Christian Zahe vs. TBA

Enfusion Live Results

Enfusion Live took place this last weekend featuring a stunning bout between Ilona Wijmans who defeated Denise Kielholtz. Both fighters moved forward to engage in a close fight that should be amongst the top female bouts of the year. The January 12th event marks the first of Enfusion's 2014 scheduled fights.

 


Results: 

Enfusion -54kgs World Championship
Ilona Wijmans def. Denise Kiel Holtz via Decision

Super Fights
Tayfun Ozcan def. Gigabyte Gigadze via Decision
Pete Doorje def. Mansour Yacubi via Decision
Youssef Chaikh def. Melvin Wash via TKO in Rd. 2
Mohamed Jarraye def. Christophe Maillot via TKO in Rd. 1
Kevin Hessling def. Charlie Peters via TKO in Rd. 3

K-1 MAX Quarter Final Results from Spain

The second half of the K-1 MAX Quarter Finals took place yesterday in Gran Canaria, Spain. Enriko Kehl, Maximo Suarez, Sung Hung Lee, and Elam Ngor were all looking to punch their ticket to the tournament semi-finals. 

Kehl who was originally set to fight in the quarterfinals that took place this past December in China fought Suarez and had no problem . Kehl was clearly the better fighter of the two as he was a step ahead of Suarez, in the end the official verdict was a unanimous decision for Kehl.

Lee and Ngor fought a very tight and technical fight that could have gone either way when it was over. In the end Lee won the fight by split decision.

Kehl and Lee now join Buakaw Banchamek and Shane Campbell in the K-1 MAX Semi-Finals.

Results:

K-1 MAX Quater Final Bouts
Enriko Kehl def. Maximo Suarez via Unanimous Decisio
Sung Hyung Lee def. Elam Ngor via Split Decision

Super Fights
Juanma Suarez def. David De Bejear via Split Decision
Alejandro Rodríguez def. Tural Bayramov via KO in Rd. 2
Chad Sudgen def. Jorge Falcon via KO in Rd. 1
Moisés Baute def. Tofan Pirani via KO in Rd. 1

K-1 World MAX 2013 Quarter Final set for January 11th in Gran Canaria, Spain

This weekend in Gran Canaria, Spain, K-1 is set to put forth their second K-1 World MAX 2013 Quarter Final event. This event will feature two additional Quarter Final bouts leading up to the K-1 World MAX 2013 Finals at the 70kg weight in February. 

The event will be free on Epicentre.tv thanks to TopBetta.com and is set to start at 21:30 GMT time on Saturday.

Fight Card:
K-1 MAX Quater Final Bouts 
Maximo Suárez vs. Enriko Kehl

Elam Ngor vs. Sung Hyung Lee

Super Fights

Damián García vs. Alcorác Caballero

Moisés Baute vs. Tofan Pirani

Aitor Alonso vs. Chad Sudge

Alejandro Rodríguez vs. Tural Bayramo

WCK Muay Thai "Matter of Pride" set for February 15th in Temecula, CA

WCK Muay Thai will return on February 15, 2014 with "Matter of Pride". The event will take place at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, CA. The main event will feature Jemyma Betrian vs. Thais Souza and the co-main event will feature a re-match between Sergio Pique and Virgil Zwicker. Other fights set to take place at the event include Bryce Krause vs. Landon Simmons, Adam Rothwiler vs. David Huerta, and Afam Egbochuku vs. Charles Bisset.
 

Jemyma Betrian will be returning to the United States to fight for the first time since April of 2013 when she defeated Baitong Sumalee by first round knockout under the WCK Muay Thai banner. Betrian is one of the sports youngest and brightest stars and easily considered one of the top female fighters in the world.
 

Sergio Pique and Virgil Zwicker will meet in a re-match of their April 2013 fight which was won by Pique via split decision. The first fight had several wild exchanges throughout the bout and looked more like Rock Em' Sock Em' Robots. Nothing less should be expected from these two in the re-match.

You can check out the most current fight card below.
 

Fight Card: 

Jemyma Betrian vs. Thais Souza

Sergio Pique vs. Virgil Zwicker

Bryce Krause vs. Landon Simmons

Adam Rothwiler vs. David Huerta

Jon Vargas vs. Melisk Baghdasaryan

Adrian Morilla vs. Levon Sarkisyan

Afam Egbochuku vs. Charles Bisset

Marvin Madariaga vs. Travs Garlits

Daniel Valdez vs. Andrew Gabriel

Francisco Garcia vs. James Steelsmith

Zoila Fausto vs. TBA

Yokkao 6 Results

Yokkao 6 took place this past weekend in Pattaya, Thailand and featured some of solid fights. In the main event Sittichai Sitsongpeenong out pointed Wanchalerm Udduonmuang en route to winning a decision. 

In the night's co-main event Toby Smith continued to prove why he is one of Australia's top fighters by defeating Thongchai Sitsongpeenong by decision. Smith is definitely a fighter Muay Thai fans should keep their eye on.

In other fights Ekapop Sor. Klinmee scored a knockout over Aussie Sam and American Eddie Martinez scored a (T)KO over Rachid Bantla in the second round of their bout.

Results:

Sittichai Sitsongpeenong def. Wanchalerm Udduonmuang via Decision
Toby Smith def. Thongchai Sitsongpeenong via Decision
Apidej Sitsongpeenong def. Yacine Darkrim via Decision
Suedam Kauanjai def. Sinsamut Sor Klinmee via Decision
Imwiset Pornnarai wins def. Behzad Rafigh Doust via Decision
Ekapop Sor Klinmee def. Aussie Sam via KO in Rd. 2
Mathias Gallo Cassarino def. Chokdee Lappet Ubon via KO in Rd. 2
Eddie Martinez def. Rachid Bantla via (T)KO in Rd. 2
Martin Tomascik Sitpholek def. Kom Kop Pechthroungrang via Decision

Check out these Retro Muay Thai shorts from Lumpinee

Lumpinee is another awesome Muay Thai Shorts brand from Thailand and has recently lauched a few new pairs of the "RETRO" Muay Thai Shorts. They are have become a pretty popular item at Muay Thai stores because of their simple yet efficient designe.

The shorts are available at MuayThaiArt.com. The shape of these shorts are slightly different from 

regular Muay Thai Shorts. They have broader hips and a little shorter legs. The designs on the shorts was meant to be kept very simple and should suit the majority of people.

There are many other brands aside from Lumpinee that are selling "RETRO" Muay Thai Shorts. You can check them all out and compare the prices. The Lumpinee ones are some of the best quality shorts, but check them all out and decide what you like best.

The shorts can be purchased at the following link and you can also use that link to look for the other brand of "RETRO" shorts. http://www.muaythaiart.com/Lumpinee_Muay_Thai_Shorts.html

Hero Legends 2014 Results and Recap

Hero Legends 2014 took place last night in Jinan, China and there were some big names fighting on the night. K-1 veteran Mike Zambidis took on Xu Yan in a fight that surprised many as Yan cruised to a unanimous decision win over Zambidis. Yan was firing on all cylinders, he knocked Zambidis down twice in the fight once in the first round and once in the second round. When it was over there was no doubt that Yan had out pointed Zambidis in what is easily one of the biggest wins of Yan's career.

Artur Kyshenko made quick work of Wen Jindo knocking him out less than a minute into their fight. Kyshenko came out and landed some big head kicks to score the victory.

Simon Marcus kept his undefeated record intact as he defeated Li Bei by first round knockout. Marcus was originally set to fight Shifu Yanzi but Bei replaced Yanzi at the last minute. Marcus scored two official knockdowns in the first round and after the second it was clear that Bei could not continue and the referee stopped the fight. With the win Marcus improves to 37-0-1.

Results:

Xu Yan def. Mike Zambidis via Unanimous Decision

Artur Kyshenko def. Wen Jindo via KO in Rd. 1

Simon Marcus def. Li Bei via (T)KO in Rd. 1

Wong Chung Kong def. Sheng Pei Kangnan via Unanimous Decision

Liu Wei def. Nicholas Lemeche via (T)KO in Rd. 1

 

John Vargas vs. Melisk Baghnasaryan set for WCK Muay Thai event on Feb. 15th

WCK Muay Thai will return to Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, CA on February 15, 2014. John Vargas is expected to return to action against Melisk Baghnasaryan. The fight will be Vargas's  first fights since his August 2013 win over Rajesh Narine at WCK Muay Thai  "Hot Summer Fights". 

Vargas knocked out Narine in the first round of their August 2013 encounter and will be looking to put together back to back wins when he faces Baghnasaryan. Fighting out of Glendale Fight Club, Baghnasaryan will be looking to make a statement against a veteran of the Muay Thai scene like Vargas. 

Make sure to keep checking back here at Muay Thai Authority to stay updated on the upcoming WCK Muay Thai event.

2013 Muay Thai Authority Awards

2013 was another big year for Muay Thai and Kickboxing in North America. With the final events of the year officially over it’s time for the 2013 Muay Thai Authority Awards. In our effort to continue to push Muay Thai and Kickboxing in North America, we have decided to once again recognize the North American Fighter of the Year (male and female), Breakthrough Fighter of the Year, Fight of the Year, Knockout of the Year, Trainer of the Year, and Rookie of the Year.

The criteria for the awards are as follows: Recipients of Fighter of the Year, Breakthrough Fighter of the year, and Rookie of the Year, must be based in North America. To be eligible for Rookie of the Year, the fighter must not have had a pro fight before November 1st, 2012 (the time frame for the award is 14 months). For the Fight of the Year and Knockout of the Year, the fights needed to have taken place on North American soil (a North American fighter scoring a KO in Thailand doesn’t count).

Here are the 2013 Muay Thai Authority Award winners:

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Male Fighter of the Year: Simon Marcus
Repeating as the Male Fighter of the Year, 2013 was another big year for Simon Marcus. He continued his busy pace with eight fights on the year, two more than 2012. His biggest win of the year came against Artem Levin at Lion Fight 9; the win cemented Simon as the number one light heavyweight in the world. He added big wins over Dmitry Valent, Damian Bujan, and Suriya Prasarthinphimai. He ended the year 7-0-1 with the draw being very controversial in a fight many believe Simon won. His clinch game is as good as they come and he has made habit of exposing his opponents short comings in the clinch, in addition he has a never back down attitude and is willing to slug it out when necessary.

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Female Fighter of the Year: Tiffany Van Soest
Van Soest is easily the most recognized female striker in North America. She went 4-0 in 2013 and passed every test put in front of her which has led to criticism from fans that they want to see her face stiffer opposition. The fact is Van Soest scored some wins over solid names in the female striking scene. Alexis Rufus was set to be a difficult fight to start the year and Van Soest knocked her out, then Lucy Payne was supposed to be the one to dethrone the “Time Bomb” and Van Soest knocked her out too. Yea she had a pair of fights where she was clearly on a completely different level than her opponents, but in the fights where she was supposed to finally lose and be exposed she didn’t just come away with wins she came away with dominant wins letting anyone with doubts about her skills know she is the real deal.

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Breakthrough Fighter of the Year: Joseph Valtellini
Fight fans began to get a glimpse of Valtellini late in 2012, but it wasn’t until signing with Glory in early 2013 that the world got to see exactly what “Bazooka” could do. He quickly became a fan favorite because of his exciting style. Great combos, thudding leg kicks, and stoppages galore Valtellini made his presence felt. His year might not have ended as he had planned after losing to Nieky Holzken in the Glory Welterweight Tournament Final, but after going 4-1 on the year it is safe to say Joseph Valtellini has arrived.

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American KO of the Year: Jason Andrada
Elbow knockouts are as exciting as they come. Countering your opponent with a perfectly timed elbow in the middle of a flurry of punches he is throwing is even more exciting and that is exactly what Jason Andrada did at Lion Fight 12. In the final round of his bout with Mohammed Lemjerdine he was backed against the ropes and as Mohammed began to unleash a flurry of punches Jason countered perfectly with the fight ending elbow. Mohammed went crashing to the canvas and it was over. It is safe to say that Jason’s power levels were over 9,000 (if you are a Jason Andrada fan you will get that statement).

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Fight of the Year: Liam Tarrant vs. Deshawn Robinson
One fighter coming in to knock his opponents head off and the other fighter having the heart and determination to survive and continue to fight are the perfect ingredients for fight of the year. Liam Tarrant and Deshawn Robinson met at the Friday Night Fights 2013 Season Opener in January of 2013 in a fight that was a roller coaster ride. Tarrant survived two knockdowns in the opening fame to fight his way back and take a majority decision on the judges’ score cards. Unfortunately most fight fans were unable to see the fight, but it was as crazy as they come. Tarrant stood victorious and in addition of surviving the two early knockdowns Tarrant had a dent the size of a baseball on his forehead. It was definitely a sight to behold as a he fought his way through the adversity and came out on top.

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Trainer of the Year: Alex Palma
Alex Palma might not be known by many outside his circle, but he is the man who trains Tiffany Van Soest. Not one looking for attention he simply gets the job done and he does it well. Representing Blue Ocean Muay Thai in San Diego he has built a solid program out there and continues to train Van Soest to reach the top. His game plans, his in fight adjustments and his everyday coaching are the perfect complement to Van Soest’s skill and athleticism.
 

2013 Muay Thai Authority North American Rookie of the Year: Jason Andrada
Andrada has gone 4-0 since turning pro this year. Three of his four wins have come via stoppage and his exciting fight style has made him a fan favorite. It doesn’t seem Andrada seems to know how to move backwards because all he does is push forward and engage, so far it has paid off for him. His biggest win of the year easily came when he knocked out Mohammed Lemjerdine at Lion Fight 12 with a beautifully timed elbow. Lemjerdine has been considered one of the east coast’s top fighters for quite some time and Andrada looked great in their bout. It will definitely be exciting to see what Andrada continues to do in the ring in 2014.