What to expect
There’s a sense of excitement when you enter, seeing the ring for the first time and feeling the atmosphere begin to build. It is quiet at the beginning, most people seem to arrive an hour or so after the first fight, but we’d argue that for families, the first half is best.
A slightly over-eager host appears, speaking in Thai and English. The fights are broadcast live on Thai television so he’s mainly speaking for their benefit but you’ll also pick-up a few interesting pieces of information.
Loud, pumping music introduces each fighter but soon recedes once the fighters enter the ring and begin the ancient pre-fight rituals including wai kru, where they moves around the ring, paying respects to their ancestors and teachers. It’s a beautiful sight and is accompanied by the live Muay Thai Orchestra, who continue to play throughout the bouts, matching the music to what’s happening in the ring.
In the first half of the evening, one bout follows the previous one quite quickly, especially if they have lasted the full three rounds. You won’t know in advance how violent or exciting the bouts will be during your visit, but the ones we saw seemed more technical and defensive, with very few gruesome attacks taking place.
Our kids really enjoyed the first couple of hours, partly because they do Muay Thai themselves. Later on in the evening, an ‘immersive Muay Thai‘ performance takes place, with the roof illuminated by an impressive light show, accompanied by booming music and spoken words, explaining the history and evolution of the sport.
After this, the atmosphere changes and the focus moves away from the ring and into the audience, who are encouraged to down cups of beers, dance for the camera, and perform for the kiss-cam. It might be more your sort of thing but we lost interest at this stage and wished they’d go back to focusing on the boxing.
