Imagine Bangkok in 1921. At a school called Suan Kulap College, people have built something new: a boxing ring that stays up all the time. It is said to have been the first permanent ring in Siam. 1
Two years later, in 1923, Suan Sanuk Stadium had a ring with three ropes and two coloured corners, red and blue. 1 Fighters still have red and blue corners today. 21
Rules, referees and gloves
King Rama VII ruled from 1925 to 1935. In his time, the rules were written down, referees were brought in and rounds were timed. 1 Then, after a serious accident in the ring, gloves took the place of rope bindings in fights between Thai boxers. 1,2
In the early 1900s the name Muay Thai came into use, to tell Thai boxing apart from international boxing with punches only, called . 1
The two great stadiums
Bangkok has two famous stadiums. The first fight at was on 23 December 1945. 7 opened on 8 December 1956. It is run by the Royal Thai Army, and in 2014 it moved to a new building. 7 The titles of these two stadiums are among the most respected in the sport. 7
Women in the ring
For a long time, women were not allowed to fight in those two rings. That changed. Lumpinee held its first women's fights on 13 November 2021, and Rajadamnern on 5 August 2022. 7,102
Before every one of those fights, the boxers do something you will not see in other kinds of boxing. They dance.