Around the world there are many interested in contact sports that want to leave a very common doubt. It is known that Muay Thai is extremely popular in Thailand (for obvious reasons), but it is also strongly trained in Europe, so many would like to know what is the difference between these two styles.
Many are surprised to see that Thai Kickboxing can be divided in this way. They are different to the point that a professional fighter can tell you immediately who fights using one system or another.
Description of styles
They can come from these countries so different from each other, but it does not stop being Muay Thai. Both exercise style have their strengths and weaknesses, while still being excellent for health. Some fighters seek to take the best techniques of both.
What are the most notorious differences? We can start by saying that the Thai training style is offensive and strong against attacks, using short series with many more kicks and combined with clinch techniques , while the European system is more inclined towards long series, using more boxing, low kicks and systems of strategy both offensive and in defence and against attack according to the opponent.
To see it from another point of view, the Thais direct their kicks towards the upper-middle part of the body and add very few fists to their combinations, while the Europeans do the opposite, use their hands a lot and seek to use kicks in the legs of his opponent.
The posture is a pretty clear difference. The Thai style fighters stand very straight, with a slightly curved posture, the highest guard and tiptoes making a small swing, while the European fighters lower their heads a little, bend their knees a little to keep the guard and raise the shoulders a little more to protect the head.
In addition, very few gyms of the European style practice blows with the elbows, because in several leagues they are prohibited or penalized. On the other hand, Thais emphasize this technique in their fights; however it is to give it a moderate use because abusing that resource would be a sign of disrespect.