Two wins for Legacy over rainy weekend

Adam from Sweden and the "retired" Ajarn Nuay traveled a long way to Nakhon Phanom last Saturday, to fight at a muay thai event that, unbelievably, didn't get cancelled due to the rain that fell persistently throughout the evening.

Adam fought first, and displayed beautiful technique, landing clean powerful shots that his opponent was unable to answer back. He finished the fight in the first round with a solid right elbow that knocked his opponent down, leaving him unable to continue.

Mongkol Khao (a.k.a. Ajarn Nuay) had an interesting fight, as the rain had started to pour heavily by the time his name was announced. The ring became very slippery, but that didn't stop the fighters from putting on a tough 5 round battle, with Ajarn Nuay securing the victory in the end.

You can watch the highlights of both fights here:



Big congratulations to the fighters, you've done Legacy proud! And thank you Mladin for standing in the rain to get the videos for us!

Ajarn Nuay's muay thai fight video

Here are some highlights of Ajarn Nuay's muay thai fight in Benchalak earlier this year. Many thanks to Hampus for the editing!

It's been a long time!

Legacy's new outside ring getting ready for action.

Hello back! Apologies for the lack of posts in the last couple of months, as I was away on holidays. The guys at the gym kept busy though, training and fighting both nationally and internationally. Here is the latest fights update:

Adam from Sweden and Kenny from Denmark fought last month at a local show near Ubon. Adam put on a fantastic fight, coming back from being knocked down three times to eventually KO his opponent in the first round. Kenny's fight was unfortunately a mismatch as he ended up facing off against a much more experienced opponent. The referee intervened and stopped it in the first round.

Matthew and Nick, both from America, also fought a couple of weeks later at another village show. Nick won his bout by what he called an "Anderson Silva elbow knockout" in the third round. As for Matthew, he faced off against a taller and heavier opponent with many fights under his belt. Matthew lost by KO due to a head kick early in the first round.

Legacy's muay thai trainers Ajarn Kong and Ajarn Nuay fought last month too. It was Ajarn Nuay's last muay thai fight, as he now retires (again!) in order to pursue his fledgling mma career . He won on points, as did Ajarn Kong.

On the mma side, Vaughn "Blud" Anderson has returned to Legacy to once again head the mma training programme. After just over a year here at legacy, Marcus Waters has made his way back to Dallas, his hometown. Thank you Marcus for all your hard work here at Legacy.

Ole has just come back from China, where he accompanied three of our mma boys who fought at the World Martial Arts Champions event. It was Ajarn Nuay's mma debut, and he used his muay thai expertise to land some damaging elbows on his opponent, but his lack of experience on the ground led allowed his opponent to gain the upper hand and submit him by armbar in the first round. Chris also lost his fight by submission, due to a rear naked choke. Vaughn on the other hand, had a fine performance which added to his ever growing winning streak.

I will try to post photos and videos of the fights soon.

Alex wins Fight of the Night in Legend FC 4

Last Thursday 27 January, Legacy's Alex Niu made his debut appearance for the growing Legend Fighting Championships promotion in Hong Kong. The event was broadcast around the world, and it was the first ever Chinese MMA event to be broadcast on American pay per view.

Alex's bout against Chinese sanda fighter Wang Sai was the opening fight on the pay-per-view card, and had the distinction of being awarded Fight of the Night after the event. In a tough 3 round fight, Alex used his boxing skills well. Alex got the better of the striking exchanges, landing some ferocious leg kicks and a good solid elbow. He also did well on the ground, with a nice arm bar attempt in the first round and a mount at the end of the second round. After three hard rounds, Alex won a unanimous decision, getting his Legend FC career off to a great start.

Many thanks to Marcus, who was in Alex's corner, for the update and the details. And a big shout out to Vaughn 'Blud' Anderson, who was commentating at the event.

Here is a link to Legend FC's run down on the fight: http://www.legendfc.com/news/index.php?newsId=62

And here is Vaughn's fight card preview: http://mrblud.com/article.asp?id=85

Sisaket Fight Videos

Here's Aidan's fight debut.





And here's Thalita's fight:






Finally, Ajarn Nuay's 5 round victory.

Legacy brilliance in Benchalak

Last night, in the small sub-district of Benchalak, in Sisaket province, a trio of Legacy fighters turned in impressive performances to seal what has been a great opening week to 2011. In the 5th bout of the night, Aidan "The Yardman" from Ireland had his first ever fight against local fighter Fardaisay. Aidan has been training part-time at Legacy for 5 months and was eager to see the results of his hard work. Like most first fights, this fight wasn't exactly technical, but The Yardman showed great punching power, some very hard knees in the clinch, and pushed the fight to an incredibly high pace from the first bell. He floored his opponent early in round 2, and finished him off soon after by KO. He was ecstatic with the victory and says he can't wait to get in the ring again in February.

Later the same night, in what was billed as one of the main events, Thalita "Mad Dog" Vergilio took on the well supported and highly regarded local fighter Banchom. Thalita had a very hard fought 5 round battle against an opponent who she considered to be her strongest to date. In a fight that really seemed to get the crowd going, both girls threw a huge amount of kicks and punches, and Thalita also landed some very nasty elbows. Mad Dog's performance gained her a few new fans as, after she got the decision, a number of spectators came to congratulate her and her trainer, Ajarn Nimnuan.

To round off the night, the "retired" Ajarn Nuay had his second fight in just over a week! He stepped up to replace a friend of his who had come down sick a couple of days before the fight. With very little pre-fight training, "Mongkol Kao" still managed to get the decision after 5 hard-hitting rounds. Both he and his opponent were obviously in a league of their own, with speed and technique that outshone the rest of the card. The fight was very close, with both fighters exchanging lightning quick combos in the opening rounds. It was only when Ajarn Nuay dropped his opponent with a clean rib-cracking body kick in the 3rd round that the balance tipped firmly in his favour.

After the fights were over, the event sponsors presented both Ajarn Nuay and Thalita with trophies for their impressive performances. All in all, it's been a pretty good week for Legacy Gym.

Videos of last night's fights will follow soon.

Legacy Gym off to a great start in 2011

Hello and Happy New Year! Although I wasn't here to witness it, Legacy Gym got 2011 off to a great start on 1 January. At a local fight event in Det Udom, Marcus Waters, our BJJ coach, made his muay thai début. He won by 4th round TKO, forcing the referee to stop the fight with a barrage of unanswered punches. Unfortunately, there is no video footage, as the rest of the gym was recovering from New Year's eve celebrations.

Ajarn Nuay, aka Mongkol Kao, continued fighting through his retirement with another impressive knockout victory on the same day. He stopped his opponent in the second round.

Nut rounded off a great start for Legacy with a 4th round stoppage, which was made more impressive by the fact that he had just fought two nights before and lost a hard 5 round decision.

Congratulations to all three fighters and, once again, Happy New Year to everyone from all of Legacy Gym!

Malik Arash Mawlayi beats Carlos Prada in Rumble of the Kings 2010

The Natural Born Killer is back again! This time, Malik faced off against young up-and-coming Swedish talent Carlos Prada in a very exciting MMA fight that took place in Stockholm as part of the Rumble of the Kings 2010 event. Prada started off strong, but was soon overwhelmed by Malik's striking power. Malik landed a number of spinning back kicks cleanly before closing the distance and delivering a flurry of unanswered punches. The referee had no option but to stop the fight, giving Malik the victory by TKO in the first round.

You can watch Malik's fight here.

New fight videos

Here is a video of one of Hampus's recent fights that I missed when I was away. He won by TKO in the first round. Enjoy!


And here you can see Bank in a couple of really tough fights.

First, his fight at the airport stadium in Ubon Ratchathani.




And here is his fight in Khong Chiam, Isaan.








Finally, here is Bo's fight, also in Khong Chiam.

Mikkel wins first fight with head kick KO

Mikkel from Denmark had his first muay thai fight last Friday and defeated his opponent with a beautiful head kick in the very first round. You can watch Mikkel's fight below - thanks to Dennis for the video!

Ajarn Nuay's rematch in Yasothon

Once again, thanks to Lotte for the recording.  Now everybody can enjoy MonkholKhao's comeback victory.

Video of Thalita 'Mad Dog' Vergilio's win in Yasothon

Big thanks to Lotte for the video.  Enjoy!

Legacy Gym 3 - Others 0

Last Saturday the 6th of November, Legacy sent three fighters, Ajarn Nuay, Hampus and Thalita,to Ban Kor Wang in Yasothon. All three fights were very important for different reasons: Ajarn Nuay fought a rematch of the fight he lost by decision six weeks ago, Hampus faced his toughest opponent to date,in a bid to extend his current winning streak to three, and Thalita made her first appearance in over a year since having reconstructive shoulder surgery.

The fight card was packed with talent and all of the fights were closely contested. The event kicked off with a couple of kids' bouts and then it was straight into the good stuff...

Thalita was the first Legacy fighter to take to the ring in the fifth bout of the evening.  She had a lot of support as two pick-ups had made their way from Ubon packed with Ajarn Nuay's friends and family and the majority of the Danish National Muay Thai Team who are currently at Legacy preparing for the World Amateur Championships in Bangkok.

Although Thalita took the fight on only 4 or 5 hours notice, she looked sharp and caught her opponent with a number of powerful right hands early in the fight.  It looked as though 'Mad Dog' might get the KO as she continued to dominate.  But her opponent was very game, and managed to last the distance.  The fight went to a judges'decision and there was no doubt who had won the bout when Thalita's arm was raised.  She was extremely happy to get her first win in Thailand and to emerge completely unscathed after four rounds of action.  Well done Thalita.

Next up was the evening's main event.  Ajarn Nuay's recent defeat in a bout he took at very short notice had left a stale taste in his mouth.  So MongkholKhao(The White Dragon) came out of his early retirement and got back to training once more.  It was obvious from the initial bell that the skill level on display here was far above that of the other fights on the card as both Ajarn Nuay and his opponent put on a superb technical display worthy of the big stadiums in Bangkok.

The opening rounds were a tit-for-tat battle with Ajarn Nuay landing a number of savage leg-kicks while his opponent concentrated more on the body.  With the power on display, it was hard to imagine the fight going the distance and in the middle of the third round, MongkholKhao landed a very quick combination and finished his opponent with an uppercut elbow.  All of us were delighted with his win as he's one of the friendliest faces at the gym and a great trainer to boot.  It seems the victory has breathed new fire into 'The White Dragon' as he now has another fight scheduled for the 19th of November.  Congratulations Ajarn Nuay, well done.

A couple of bouts later 'SuperHam' took the spotlight.  It was Hampus's third fight in recent weeks and, taking a step up in class this time, he took on a much more experienced opponent.  The trainers had been warning him for a couple of weeks about this guy's ability and cunning, so he was prepared for a tough battle.  But as in each of his previous bouts, Hampus wasted no time in launching an all-out attack with elbows and vicious knees to the head.  He took a couple of hard leg kicks and was rocked early in the second round by a combination of punches but, once Hampus smells blood, he is relentless.  He finished his opponent with a flurry of knees in only the second round and has as yet never made it to the third round in his entire fight career.  The trainers were so impressed with his performance that there is talk of him facing off against former Legacy trainer Muuhin, or even SuperClinch in the near future.  Now, that's a match worth writing about: SuperClinch vs SuperHam!!!!!
Well done Hampus.

Catching up

Hey guys, sorry for the lack of updates on the blog recently, I've been away on holidays and I'm only just starting to catch up with everything.

Well, first things first, big congratulations to Ole 'Iron Fist' Laursen who won another MMA fight in Singapore on the 16th of October 2010. It was the final Martial Combat event of the year in Singapore's Resorts World Sentosa complex to wrap up what has been an extremely successful inaugural year for their organisation.

Ole starred in the co-main event of Martial Combat 12, taking on Malaysian newcomer Chee Jian Kai. With Ole’s unbeaten 2-0 Martial Combat record and Legacy’s overall 6-2-1 record at stake, there was a lot of pressure on him to finish this year’s campaign with another victory.

He didn’t disappoint, finishing his opponent viciously by ground and pound TKO in the first round.  Although Martial Combat won’t return until mid 2011, Ole plans to continue training hard and fighting smart, with his next fight scheduled for Sweden’s Rumble of the Kings event later this month.

Hampus from Sweden also fought again, easily defeating his opponent by first round TKO. Niki from Denmark had his first muay thai fight, which he took on short notice. He did well in the first couple of rounds, but was unable to come out for the third round and lost the fight. There were also three Legacy fighters in action last weekend, but I'll blog about them tomorrow when I have the videos.

Another two TKO victories for Legacy Gym

Hampus, from Sweden, fought again last Sunday, less than a week after coming back from his MMA fight in China. He headlined the card promoted by Ajarn Lai in the village of Na Yia, 30km away from Ubon. Hampus was supposed to fight Pa Yu Yai in a most anticipated muay thai rematch, but ended up having his opponent swapped a couple of days before the fight for local fighter Nu Ang Kor.

Hampus started the first round strong and pushed the pace from the very beginning, not giving Nu Ang Kor space to land his strikes. He caught the Thai fighter with a couple of clean knees to the head that would easily have dropped most mortals. But Nu Ang Kor had a hell of a chin. He landed a couple of big right hands and a good elbow, but Hampus seemed unfazed and kept pressing forward.

In the second round, Hampus was relentless in his attack and determined to end the fight. He utilized his height advantage well, looking for high kicks and knees to the head - and landing them! It wasn't long before Nu Ang Kor got a standing 8 second count by the referee. Hampus continued his flurry of strikes to the point that his opponent was no longer answering back - the referee had no choice but to end the contest and give him the win by TKO.





Nut, the newest Thai kid to join Legacy Gym, also fought on Sunday, on the same card as Hampus. He had a tough battle against an older opponent, who was getting the best of the fight until the last round, when Nut's superior fitness won him the fight. Nut's opponent dropped to the ground in exhaustion, seconds before the end of the last round, and the referee called an end to the fight - another win for Nut, and another TKO for Legacy!







Ajarn Nuay, one of the muay thai trainers at Legacy, came out of retirement to fight in Sisaket that same night. He had only two days' notice after a period of over a year without training. Ajarn Nuay went the distance, but lost on points, and feels like it could perhaps have been a different story had he had more time to train and get ready for the fight. Rematch on the line?

Well, this is it for now. Videos of Hampus's and Nut's fights will be posted here soon, watch this space!

Hampus and Marcus are back from China

Hampus and Marcus are now back from Yulin, China, near the border with Inner Mongolia, where they had a couple of tough MMA fights last week. They were accompanied by Ole Laursen, who flew from Singapore to be in their corner straight after being cornerman for Malik and Isa at Martial Combat 9 and 10.

Marcus fought well and lost a controversial decision on points. The referee's interventions, breaking the action and re-starting the fighters in the middle of  the ring was, at times, hard to justify. Especially since the fighters were re-started in the stand-up position, not the same position they were in when the referee intervened. Marcus had his opponent in a tight armbar at one point (as you can see in the picture above), but was made to let go by the referee, who re-started the fighters in the stand-up position.

Hampus's fight was declared a no-contest. He got repeatedly stomped on the face 20 seconds into round one. The referee stopped the fight and seemed to hesitate a while, before raising the Chinese fighter's arm in victory. After much controversy, the decision was ruled out and changed to a no-contest. Such severe infringement of the rules would, in any other place, mean a sure win for Hampus by disqualification.

Hampus is disappointed that his first MMA fight had to be stopped so early, but he has a muay thai fight scheduled for this weekend, and says he can't wait for another chance to kick some arse again!

Click here to watch a video of Hampus's fight.

Natural Born Killer bags another win in Singapore

Malik Arash Mawlayi returned to Resort World Sentosa last Wednesday to fight as the main event in Martial Combat 9. He submitted China based Thai fighter Arthit "Ah Ting" Hanchana in the second round, with an arm triangle. This was his second victory at Martial Combat against a muay thai based opponent. Once again he used his superior grappling and ground skills to secure a victory. Malik has been back in Sweden for a while, training hard, and all of Legacy are looking forward to him returning to Ubon some time next year.

Isamu Himura squared off against American Xavier Macay. It was his second appearance at Martial Combat and his first representing Legacy Gym. By all accounts, it was a close fight and this was reflected in the judges' scorecard, with the fight being scored as a draw - the first one in Martial Combat history. Isamu was very disappointed with the result, as he felt he clearly got the better of the ground fight.

The videos of both fights will be available in a couple of weeks, watch this space. Once again, pictures from ringside at Martial Combat come courtesy of Brett L. Thanks, mate!

Kong vs. Muuhin: Battle of the Ajarns

On the 31 August, the spectators at Ubon stadium were treated to the highly anticipated re-match between current Legacy Gym trainer Ajarn Kong and former trainer Ajarn Muuhin. Their previous bout went the distance, with Muuhin proving to be the stronger fighter in the clinch. He used his size and strength advantage well to overpower Kong throughout the fight and get the decision. Ajarn Kong was really disappointed with his performance and eager to have a rematch.

Ajarn Kong spent the whole of August training hard for the fight, and many hours improving his clinch work with Ajarn Nimnuan. It seemed Muuhin was training hard too, as he was spotted running around the lake on numerous occasions.

On the night of the fight, a large crowd gathered in support of both fighters, despite the heavy rain. Ajarn Kong's supporters included nearly all the staff and fighters at Legacy, some of his personal friends, and even a very loud drummer. Both fighters lost a noticeable amount of weight since their previous encounter, and looked mean and ready for a reckless war.

Rounds 1 and 2 were slow paced, with each of the ajarns seemingly searching for holes in the other's technique. The action started to pick up in round 3, but it was round 4 that decided the bout. Ajarn Kong won in convincing fashion, dominating not only in the clinch but also in the striking game. Below is a video of the fight in full, including Ajarn Kong's amazing acrobatic celebration as the decision was announced.

Legacy wins 2 out of 3 on Saturday

It was a busy day on Saturday for Legacy fighters, with Phillip fighting at Talat Wichai and both Kim and Leeyam fighting at Ubon Stadium.

Phillip faced off against the same opponent who, a couple of months ago, defeated Frankie from San Francisco. The bout headlined an event staged by Yamaha, which was televised locally on channel 11. It included a seated dinner for around 200 guests, 8 muay thai fights and performances by Thai singers. Phillip started the fight strongly, with a couple of sharp boxing combinations. As his confidence grew, he started using a variety of techniques, including a spinning elbow which wowed the crowd. His opponent landed a couple of good elbows, but Phillip was unphased and continued to attack. The fight finished suddenly when Phillip landed a solid kick cleanly on his opponent's jaw, knocking him out cold. The crowd was impressed with Phillip's technique and accuracy, and many came to congratulate him after the fight.



Kim Siam continues to ease through his opponents with superb technique and vicious knees. His fight at the stadium on Saturday night seemed a foregone conclusion, with none of the bookies willing to take bets against him. He started the fight in his usual manner, tentatively gauging his opponent's range whilst evading most of his attacks. At the end of the first round, he began to close down the distance and deliver a few knees to his opponent's midsection. In the second round, Kim continued to land accurate knees to the body, hurting his opponent, who started to show signs of fatigue. He finished the fight in the third round, with a succession of powerful knees that knocked the wind out of his opponent and left him unable to continue.



On the same card, Leeyam, another Legacy youngster, took on a much heavier opponent in a gruelling five round battle. The first couple of rounds were typical of Thai fights, with both fighters feeling each other out. Leeyam picked up the pace in rounds 3 and 4, and seemed to be getting the better of his opponent in the clinch. He was however visibly tired in round 5, and allowed his opponent to come back and get the decision.




Congratulations to the three fighters, who topped up Ole's birthday weekend with some great results for Legacy.

A hat-trick of victories for Legacy Gym at Martial Combat 7 and 8

Nick 'Hooligan' Mellor scored an impressive victory over Canadian Victor Wang at last night's Martial Combat 7 event, in Singapore. Nick started the fight strongly, landing some good strikes, before taking his opponent to the ground. Wang was active off his back, but Nick managed to pass his guard before both fighters returned to their feet. Nick finished the round in a dominant position, looking for a rear naked choke. The second round followed a similar pattern, with Nick taking Wang to the ground once again. He escaped a tight submission attempt by Wang, before mounting him and forcing the referee to stop the fight with some savage ground and pound.

The Legacy boys have obviously been working hard on their ground and pound skills, as Vaughn 'Blud' Anderson also secured a victory by ground and pound TKO in the second round of his first Martial Combat event. His fight against Korean 'Hellboy' Hyoung Woo Kim was a more one-sided affair. Vaughn's striking power and wealth of experience on the ground easily won him the first round. In the second round, he looked determined to end the bout. He stepped up the pace of his strikes and finished his opponent on the ground, in brutal fashion.

Ole 'Iron Fist' Laursen completed the hat-trick of victories for Legacy Gym, winning a close-fought decision over American Nicolas Leconte. We have no other details about this fight as it just finished a few minutes ago.

 On a final note, Alex Niu, who trained at Legacy recently, suffered a defeat at the hands of rising star and muay thai world champion Vuisile Colossa. Alex fought hard and secured a couple of takedowns, but was overpowered by his opponent's superior striking in the second round.

Photos courtesy of Brett L via his iPhone. More pictures, links to videos and other details of the fights will be posted as soon as they become available.