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2011-09-25T22:39:00.001+08:00

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Rumble in the concrete jungle

2009-11-27T00:10:00.000+08:00

Friday, November 27, 2009

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Rumble in the concrete jungle

Source: Global Times
[23:45 November 12 2009]

Taking a beating for a good cause. Photo: Guo Yingguang

By Matthew Jukes

More than one or two bruises were seen on Wednesday night as Battlefield X1 Supremacy drew to a close. The high profile Muay Thai event was held to raise money for the China Children and Teenagers Foundation.

Vince Soberano, previously featured in Metro Beijing's People section, defended his good name as World Lightweight Muay Thai Champion in a professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) bout against Bryon Schnell.

"I don't want to fight my opponent on the ground," said the champ, referring to some of the nasty Brazilian jiu jitsu locks that Schnell had used throughout the fight. "I prepared for three months for this. If I'm not sure I'm going to win, I don't fight. I just take my time, hit and hurt him until finally I get him on the ground," Soberano added.

Outside the ring, signed photos of assorted Hollywood names, including Angelina Jolie and George Clooney, were on silent auction for thousands of yuan apiece. "I think it's good to see people like this coming together," said Yan Na, from the China Children and Teenagers foundation. "The people who are joining this event are, in a way, part of the charity as well," she added.

It was a surprising quiet night for China's male fighters with Yang Zhuo beating compatriot Kang Xin in the third fight. Black Tiger's Christian Macia took the charity cup over Li Qiankun, while Thailand's own Pongsak took home the Pacific Rim title and Filipino Jerson Estoro took home the Greater Asia title.

It was however a good night for China's women, with Xu Aihui beating Filipino Sonrex Patano in the only female fight of the evening.

matthewjukes@globaltimes.com.cn

Rumble in Beijing - November 11, 2009!!!

2009-11-19T23:57:00.001+08:00

Rumble in Beijing

Submitted on Nov 9, 2009 4:00pm by Stephanie Gillett

Battlefield X1: Supremacy is a martial arts exhibition with a charitable twist. With ten bouts featuring fighters from around the world, and two championship belts on the line, the event will raise money for the China Children and Teenagers Foundation – all proceeds from Battlefield X1 will be donated to the charity. World Lightweight Muay Thai Champion Vince Soberano spoke to Stephanie Gillett about his long career as a Muay Thai boxer and gym owner, and looked forward to his cage fight at Battlefield X1.

What inspired you to become a Muay Thai fighter?
When I was 10 years old, I was frail and sickly. I was terrible at sports and very uncoordinated. Then I watched a Muay Thai event at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok. I knew right away I wanted to be a boxer. How long have you been fighting? On and off for 20-plus years.

How has the world of Muay Thai fighting changed since you started your career?
A lot has changed in terms of the quality and training of fighters, but the traditions remain the same. Many competitions around the world are based on Muay Thai, but the rules have been altered. However, when you watch the bouts, the grounding in Muay Thai is still apparent.

What has been the most memorable moment of your career so far?
Winning another world title fight in Thailand at age 43.

Who was your most challenging opponent?
A Thai fighter [who I fought] at Rajadamnern Stadium. That was my most challenging fight, because I was underweight and physically smaller than my opponent.

What is the craziest thing you have ever seen happen in the ring?
Two fighters knock each other out at the same time!

Have you ever fought in a cage fight before?
Yes, back in 1996 I fought Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) bouts in the US.

How will your strategy in the cage at Battlefield X1 differ from a traditional ring match?
When fighting in a traditional ring, I can lean back against the ropes and still be at an advantage. In a cage, it’s dangerous to get trapped and pinned against the cage, so I’ll have to keep moving laterally to keep that from happening.

What do you do to gear up for a match? What is your routine?
I just make sure I get plenty of rest and sleep the day before the fight. I also eat lots of carbohydrates to store energy. Other than that, I just take it easy and keep a positive attitude.

How and why did you become involved in promoting Muay Thai in China?
When I first came to China in 2005, I saw the opportunity and the need to promote authentic Muay Thai. There were a lot of clubs that advertised Muay Thai classes but weren’t anything close to real Muay Thai. When I gave a Muay Thai seminar at Powerhouse Gym, at a friend’s invitation, more than 50 people showed up. So many people were interested in the fighting style that they literally begged me to start teaching in Beijing.

How has Muay Thai been received in China?
Thanks to movies like Ong-bak, Muay Thai is regarded as a very popular and very exotic fighting art. It’s also considered a truly exciting fighting sport, thanks to competitions such as K-1. When I started introducing Muay Thai in Beijing, I also presented it as an effective and fun fitness system.

And how do you plan to enhance Muay Thai’s success in China?
[As I mentioned,] my kind of Muay Thai in China is not just a martial art and fighting sport, but also a fitness system and healthy lifestyle. My gym is not just a gym – it’s also a club and a community. People join Black Tiger not just because we teach Muay Thai, but also because we are a quality brand. We are Black Tiger Muay Thai – a lifestyle.

With my new company, Hero Entertainment, we are promoting Muay Thai in our big show, Battlefield X – a series of world-class championship fighting events that use full Muay Thai rules and follow traditional Muay Thai ceremonies. This is not just a regular combat sport event like boxing and MMA, it’s also a cultural event because it is laced with traditions practiced for hundreds of years in Thailand.

How long do you intend to continue fighting?
I stopped answering this question two years ago, after I came out of retirement for the third time in my life. I guess the answer is that I don’t really know anymore. I’m just having so much fun that I don’t want to think about stopping now.

Battlefield X1: Supremacy takes place November 11 at the China World Hotel Conference Hall. For more information, visitwww.blacktigerclub.com. RMB 600-1,200, RMB 400 (ladies), dinner and wine included. Tickets at 8706 1940, 8656 7818 or e-mail chinafighters@gmail.com. 6pm (venue opens), 7pm (start). China World Hotel, 1 Jianguomenwai Dajie, Chaoyang District. (6505 2266) 朝阳区朝阳区建国门外大街1号中国大饭店2层

Beijing Black Tiger@Club Hero
Mon-Fri 8am-9.30pm, Sat 10am-6pm, Sun noon-6pm. Suite 110, Bldg D, Cable 8, 8 Langjiayuan, Jianguo Lu (west of Wanda Plaza), Chaoyang District. (8706 1940, 8656 7818, 8918 3249, 6581 5570) www.blacktigerclub.com 朝阳区建国路万达广场西侧郎家园8号尚8创意产业园D座110

Kicking it for the kids

2009-11-08T13:41:00.002+08:00

Source: Global Times [22:28 November 03 2009]

By Matthew Jukes

Rarely are children and violence a good mix. But come Wednesday November 11, fighters at the Battlefield X1 event are going to have a good old fashioned punch up that will do a lot of good for some of China's children. And it's all thanks to World Lightweight Muay Thai Champion Vince Soberano.

"It's funny how the whole story began. I wasn't planning to do a big show like this,"says Soberano, sitting in his gym at Club Hero surrounded by the noise of students hitting the bags.

"My girlfriend just told me one day, 'I really want to do something for impoverished kids in China.' She showed me pictures on the Internet of kids living in other places in China, the pictures were really sad. She said we should do something, maybe donate money or hold a charity event. I don't know much about holding other types of events, or fund raising, but one thing I do know is how to promote a Muay Thai event."

That's certainly no lie. The Californian not only holds the World Lightweight title, but still hosts frequent fight events and looks after a business and its 350 students while still finding time to train (and be pestered by Metro Beijing).

Caped crusader

For those who don't know, Muay Thai, also known as Thai boxing, is the national sport of Thailand. It is a highly effective martial art which utilizes as much of the body, including elbows and knees as a weapon to be both practical in a real fight, but also maintains a rich history in competition.

"I was 10 years old when my dad took me to watch a fight in Bangkok. As soon as I saw my first Muay Thai fight, I fell in love with it and never stopped since. The next day he took me to join a local gym, and the rest is history,"Soberano says.

"I had done some karate and taekwondo as a kid but after I saw Muay Thai, all the karate and stuff I did before just seemed so fake, they don't hit each other. They do all these nice looking movements, but you don't really know how effective it is. I watched a Muay Thai fight and thought: 'Oh my god!' They're using parts of the body that are really effective, they know how to create the distance, they know how to bridge the gap…this is real fighting, not just forms and dancing around."

Prior to his career as professional fighter and trainer the mild mannered champ had been working batman-style as a software engineer for an American company. "By day I was working in a software office and by night was a fighter. I've been doing both of them at the same time over all those years,"he adds. It was the software work which brought him to Beijing, but it's not what keeps him here now.

In 2006 after holding some seminars at fitness clubs, the fighter was defeated by the need for a Muay Thai gym in Beijing. Wasting no time Soberano went back to the US to hand in his resignation in person and came back to China to become a full time fighter.

"I was so surprised at how it turned out. I realized that the Chinese want something new, something exotic, they want to experience a whole new and alternative style of fitness and martial arts. In Muay Thai they're doing something special that no one else does. It's trendy."

Las Vegas

Now since a merger this year with a Brazilian jiujitsu gym, Black Tiger Club Hero has taken off, and MMA (mixed martial arts – fighting both on the ground and standing up) are the way forward.

At Battlefield X1, Soberano's fight will be the only MMA bout of the evening, and as it's a full contact professional event it's going to be gritty. But other than his opponent he's got some others to look out for. "I'm concerned about my fighters; I have eight students who are fighting. The majority of the fighters are from my gym and of course I want them to win, I've spent a lot of time training them and working with them,"he says with genuine concern.

That's not going to stop the event being a little upscale. One of his students is the executive chef at the China World Hotel, and when he heard Soberano wanted to host a charity event, he was only too happy to oblige. The result is a Las Vegas style black tie set up, complete with all the hobbies of the aristocracy; fine dining, a silent auction, and of course a big name guest list.

"If we're going to have a charity event, why invite people who don't have any money, who can barely pay for the tickets? Let's invite people who have bundles of cash that they can give to charity. So we made this a black tie event to bring in the upper echelons of society – and it sure did,"says the charitable champ.

There will be 10 fights, featuring fighters from China, USA, Europe, and of course Thailand. Two of them are championship fights.

Proceeds from the event will go to the China Children and Teenagers Foundation and although names can't be dropped, some of China's famous faces are set to attend. It looks like it's shaping up to be an evening to remember.

MT-X Thai Boxing Fitness in China

2009-11-02T16:17:00.002+08:00

美腿！扫猛男

文◎王家轩图◎蔡小福

2009年10月16日16:24

　　尝试你的拳法生活

如果你熟知泰拳或钟情于这项运动，那MT-X（Muay Thai Cross Training）对你来说绝对不会陌生。它可是泰国拳击健身运动中最耗体力且最危险的一项, 与此同时，它也是一项将健身、技能训练、养生和调节身体各项机能融为一体的挥汗运动。它的更大优势在于，你只需要抽出一点时间，便能让你身心倍感轻松。顺便释放工作压力和生活烦恼。当然，待你周身血液沸腾之后，请尽情将烦恼击打出来。

　　当你发觉拳法锻炼已经成为你生活中一部分时，我们非常愿意推荐你尝试更有乐趣的“泰拳生活”：2009年11月11日，首届亚洲泰拳精英争霸赛将于中国大饭店举行。这是中国第一个正装出席的泰拳搏击慈善晚宴，在这次活动中，您不仅仅可以看到一场泰拳的巅峰对决，同时还可以体味到泰国文化，以及泰拳在中国的介绍和推广。此次比赛将呈现给您多场世界一流水平的较量，世界泰拳冠军Vince也将对决来自美国的挑战者，将给观众们带来最精彩的视觉盛宴。此外，本次活动所得将全部捐赠给中国儿童少年基金会“中国儿童保险专项基金”，全部用于救助中国患病孤儿。我们期待您的参与，更希望泰拳可以带给您无尽的快乐！

http://sports.people.com.cn/GB/151651/171144/10207286.html

Fighting to save the little orphans

2009-11-02T13:10:00.001+08:00

Muay Thai boxer Vince Soberano is holding a charity event to raise money for orphans.

Meet Vince Soberano: Successful software engineer, college film major and pizza delivery boy. Oh yes, and he's also a Thai boxing world champion.

The 44-year-old former World Welterweight Champion now runs the Black Tiger Hero Club, the famous Muay Thai boxing gym in Beijing.

Today the Filipino American trains 300 fighters and is a perfect example on how to live the life to the fullest.

He became hooked on Thai boxing when he first saw a fight in Bangkok, and started training at the age of 13. He was a natural and won a series titles the World Professional Muay Thai Federation (WPMT) titles during the mid-1980s and early 90s.

But Vince never took fighting as a full-time career.

Instead, he immigrated to the US and studied film as his major at a university in California. He did many odd jobs after graduation. He was a paperboy and a pizza delivery guy before a job working in a software company.

"But Thai boxing has always been my passion," he said.

The lure of the ring finally made him quit his office job not long after being sent by the company to open its China office in 2005.

And that's how his Thai boxing school began.

Starting a business in China is difficult in many foreigners' eyes, but not for Soberano.

While most fighters may have "zero" understanding of how business works, Soberano had already mastered good people skills, presentation and developed a sharp eye for opportunities.

And he does not see "red tape and people work" as drawbacks because it is easier to open business in Beijing more than ever before.

"The hardest part for foreigners to run a business in China is the language," he said.

"Therefore, partnering with Chinese is a good choice. And if you don't know any Chinese, you need to have Chinese-speaking employees you trust so that you could know the way around, the policies, where to get things, etc."

Soberano is lucky that he not only made sound partnership with local friends, but also met Feifei, his beautiful Chinese girlfriend.

And now, he is carrying out a new mission to spread the good word about Thai boxing.

Inspired by a picture of a Chinese orphan his girlfriend showed him four months ago, he began holding a charity Thai boxing championship to show his love and encourage these children in the country he has lived for almost four years. And the event is set to open on Nov 11.

Proceeds from the charity event will be donated to the China Children and Teenagers Foundation.

"There was a time when I used to fight for money, but this time, I feel like I am fighting for a cause," he said.

But he hopes the Thai boxing event will not only financially help the orphans, but also inspire them by the perseverance that the sport requires.

And that is why this fighter with a record of 65 wins and 2 losses decided to fight again in the upcoming event.

"As Thai boxing is a combat sport, in order to survive, you have to really prepare and train hard, or else you will get really hurt. Life is also a fight, no one want to be the last place," he said.

"We hope children can be inspired this way in their growth, because, no matter the kids from the States or China, they are our future."

Countdown to "Battlefield X1: Supremacy"

2009-11-02T08:03:00.001+08:00

Link

Fashion Magazine Features Vince Soberano

2008-12-16T23:12:00.006+08:00

Lime Magazine, one of China's leading men's fashion magazines, recently named Vince Soberano as China's Top Muay Thai Expert and Master Instructor. The prestigious magazine featured Vince Soberano in the Men's Talk section as the main feature story for its Sept 2008 issue. The story is centered on Vince's Muay Thai fighting career, accomplishments and business ventures.

The Chinese-language magazine, with a healthy paid circulation of about 600,000-plus subscribers and advertisers all over mainland China, Taiwan and Hong Kong, is a thick, high-quality magazine packed with fashion and lifestyle articles, photos and advertisements primary for China's new generation of upscale, professional and upwardly mobile men.

In the photos, Vince also modeled Giorgio Armani suits and shoes, as well as Lane Bryant dress shirts. A totally different publicity experience for him, Vince admits that it was a unique and unforgettable experience working and interviewing with the Lime Magazine editorial and photography team.

Here are scanned copies of the feature article:

World Muay Thai champ holds Bacolod seminar

2008-11-24T20:38:00.001+08:00

World+Muay+Thai+champ+holds+Bacolod+seminar

Posted using ShareThis

Kru Vince gets major media coverage

2008-11-15T06:05:00.016+08:00

Several major magazines recently featured Vince Soberano, covering both his accomplishments as a world champion and his campaign to promote Muay Thai in China.
In October 2008, a sleek publication called it Magazine featured Vince as their cover story. The magazine is circulated nationally throughout Southeast Asia.

In Beijing, Vince was featured by City Weekend Magazine in the November 2008 issue's Day In The Life special section. City Weekend gave a thorough account of a typical training day for the world champion, showing the diversity of challenges he faces everyday.
Also in Beijing, the magazine Beijing This Month featured Vince in their November 2008 issue covering fitness gyms in Beijing. The article talked about Black Tiger Academy's Muay Thai fitness program, a unique system that Vince has created, catering to upscale clientele and urban professionals.

Autumn 2008 Schedule for Beijing

2008-09-17T14:42:00.002+08:00

We have increased our classes and added new programs due to popular demand!

Starting October 7, 2008, Muay Thai training and classes are scheduled as follows:

TUESDAY and THURSDAY (Jianwai Soho Gym)

10:00 am to 5 pm - Personal Training
6:00 pm to 7:00 pm - Open Gym
7:00 pm to 8:30 pm - Group Class
8:30 pm - 9:30 pm - Open Gym

WEDNESDAY and FRIDAY (Lido Country Club)

7:30 pm to 9:00 pm - Group Class
9:00 pm - 9:30 pm - Open Gym

SATURDAY (Jianwai Soho Gym)

2:30 pm to 4:00 pm - Group Class
4:00 pm to 5:00 pm - Open Gym

SUNDAY (Jianwai Soho Gym)

2:30 pm to 5:00 pm - Open Gym

For more information, call: +86 1391 071 2576
Or email us at: info@muaythaichina.com

WMF Super-Middleweight Title - Feb. 13, 2008, Bangla Stadium, Thailand

2008-02-24T08:11:00.001+08:00

KO Victory at the King's Birthday World Championships

2007-12-13T14:31:00.000+08:00

Latest Update: At the World Professional Muay Thai Federation championships, Vince Soberano Kaewsamrit KO'd his Thai opponent with a devastating left hook and elbow in the 3rd round. This event was held to honor the King of Thailand on his 80th birthday, Dec. 5, 2007. More than 60,000 spectators attended the 2-day fight marathon, with fighters from 50 different countries competing in the most prestigious international event of the year in Muay Thai. Coming from his recent wins in Thailand this year, Vince is the first and only Filipino-American to fight and win at both the Queen's and the King's Birthday on the same year here in Bangkok.

China Daily Recognizes Beijing's Top Muay Thai School

2007-11-07T21:01:00.000+08:00

CHINA DAILY / Page 18

A one-two punch

By Jeremy Hartley for China Daily
Updated: 2007-09-13 07:1

The two fighters circle one another, testing the distance with jabs and low-slung kicks, aimed at the knee and ribs. Without warning, one combatant charges, and in a flurry of fists and grasping hands, the two grapple their way toward the choke or excruciating arm-bar that will end the fight.

Within seconds one is on his back, the other sitting astride him aiming punches at his nose and mouth. When they finally break, the fighter on the ground slowly rolls to his knees.

"If he gets up like that again, kick him in the face," says Professor Chet Quint, a bull-necked black belt in Brazilian Ju Jitsu (BJJ).

The combatants chuckle as they catch their breath.

"I'm serious," adds Quint. "He knows better than to get up like that."

Scenes like this are common at Beijing's Black Tiger Academy, home to what its owners describe as China's most authentic experiences with BJJ, muay Thai (Thai boxing) and Mixed Martial Arts, the system that blends the two together. Every night and weekend at the school's ninth floor space in Jianwai SOHO, paying students from China and beyond learn the world's most bone-cracking fighting styles. It is a testament to the interest in these arts that Black Tiger Academy draws such a crowd, even in the country with arguably the world's most rich and celebrated martial arts culture. Think of it as all the promise of globalization with an elbow to the throat.

Black Tiger Academy is the brainchild of Quint, a "martial arts junkie" from the United States, and Vincent Soberano, a former World Welterweight Champion Thai boxer from the Philippines. Before opening Black Tiger, the two had traveled the globe, perfecting their respective arts on the wrestling mat and in the ring. A chance encounter in Beijing in 2005 revealed the two to be kindred spirits, each intent on sharing his art, and both open to the possibilities of combining them.

Muay Thai and BJJ might seem like strange bedfellows. Muay Thai is a centuries-old kickboxing style that incorporates knee and elbow strikes. Though Thai boxers do learn grappling techniques, their primary focus is toe-to-toe brawling. It was developed by Thai kings and used in wars throughout history. Today, muay Thai is a wildly popular sport, both in Thailand and abroad.

BJJ is a comparatively modern - and aggressive - adaptation of Japanese Judo that was developed in Brazil by the legendary Gracie family, and which grabbed the world's attention in the 1990s when the diminutive Royce Gracie won several Ultimate Fighting Championships using the art. Its language is one of arm-bars, chokes and other submission holds.

"Eventually you are going to end up on the ground with us, and you will lose," Quint says.

The two styles are recognized for the efficiency with which their practitioners dispatch opponents. Both are steeped in legend, from tales of Thailand's royal family learning to box to the rise of the Gracie fighters. Combined, these arts have reshaped the way martial artists fight - the slashing kicks and elbows of muay Thai are mixed with the apparently unstoppable ground fighting techniques of BJJ in a Frankenstein's monster that is equal parts violence and tradition.

Soberano got his first taste of muay Thai 32 years ago, when, at the age of 10 he saw a professional fight at Bangkok's Lumpini stadium.

"I saw these guys soccer kick each other's heads off," Soberano recalls.

He was hooked. He started training at a camp in a former prize-fighter's garage the next day, and had his first real fight at the age of 13. He later moved to the United States, where he would go on to become the World Welterweight Champion, with 64 professional fights under his belt.

Inspired to share his skills, he opened his first Black Tiger Academy in San Diego in 1991.

A software engineer by trade, Soberano moved to Beijing in 2004 to run an outsourcing office and then started his own software consulting company in 2005. However, the lure of the ring never faded. Tired of shadowboxing in his office, Soberano looked for a place to teach the art he had practiced since his boyhood. That same year he met Professor Chet Quint.

"I didn't really have any plans to teach until I met Chet," he says. "It was a great opportunity to present the two most powerful fighting systems in the world."

Quint is the only BJJ black belt teaching the art in China. His own love affair with martial arts started at the age of 13 in Miami, Florida, where he trained in everything from Tae Kwon Do to stick-fighting. After stints as a bouncer and police officer, Quint picked up on stories of a tough ground-fighting new style from Brazil. A video entitled Gracie In Action convinced him that he had a hole in his repertoire.

He started training under Professor Pedro Sauer, one of the world's most famous BJJ teachers, in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1996. Sauer, along with Gracie brothers Rickson, Rorion and Royce, was part of the first wave of BJJ teachers to travel abroad.

In 2004, Quint moved to Brazil to train and met an Australian student who encouraged him to come to Beijing. Quint decided to take him up on the offer.

What he found surprised him. Many of the young Chinese people he met were more interested in Western culture than their own traditions, while many of the expats were having a hard time finding a Chinese martial art that suited their needs.

"Chinese people had no idea what Jiu Jitsu was," he says. "I was naive because when I came out here I thought I would be able to tap into this huge martial culture."

Soberano agrees that people here are wary of non-Chinese martial arts.

"We're not the first choice. We're not even the second choice. But eventually people come here looking for something more realistic," he says.

Tamara Shefa, 25, from Tel Aviv, Israel, is one such student. She had studied Chinese at home and came to Beijing for a deeper experience. She was also looking for a way to continue her kickboxing hobby, but struggled to find a place to study kung fu.

"And Tai Chi is too slow for me," she says.

Black Tiger proved to be a fortuitous discovery. "I've never had physical contact. I've only ever hit the bags and the air," she says, wrapping her wrists before a muay Thai class.

Quint says some of the school's students come for the fitness and some for the self-defense. Some even come hoping to fight professionally, which Quint says could take 10 years of training.

Bush Shen, 22, a Chinese American student at Peking University, had been studying muay Thai for one year and a half before coming to China and spent his Spring Festival holiday at a boxing camp in Thailand.

"I see it as the most practical form of self-defense," he says, adding that the health advantages were also important.

Stress-relief is one of the reasons Brandon Cristiano, 36, an American chef from Washington DC, comes to Black Tiger.

"I have a little too much energy for one person," he says. "I spend most of my free time here at the gym."

"To train with people of their caliber and experience you can't ask for a better thing in a school," he adds.

Whatever people's reasons for coming, they are in for a tough workout. And, as Quint notes, the experience of fighting can be transformational.

"You can take that knowledge, that lineage, with you wherever you go in the world," he says.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2007-09/13/content_6102108.htm

(China Daily 09/13/2007 page18)

2007 World Muay Thai Championships, Bangkok, Thailand

2007-09-12T21:37:00.001+08:00

Latest Update: In August 2007, Vince Soberano fought Somchak of Thailand in the 140-pound division at the Queen's Birthday Superfights. Check out the video of Vince's win by second round KO against the more experienced Thai fighter. Watch closely because it happens real fast!

Click here to go to Muay Thai China's YouTube Channel.

Fight Photos:

Muay Thai in Beijing

2007-06-18T10:12:00.002+08:00

Sawatdee khrup!

Ni hao from Beijing, China, where Muay Thai is about to become the new and hottest martial arts and fitness trend! Kru Vince, founder of Black Tiger Thai Boxing Gym in San Diego, California, brings his own brand of authentic Muay Thai to Black Tiger Academy in Beijing.

Kru Vince came from Orange County, California to Beijing on a work project for his previous software company in 2005. Knowing that he would be staying in Beijing for a while, he searched high and low for an authentic Muay Thai school. He found some schools that practiced SanDa (Chinese kickboxing) and mixed in a little bit of Thai Boxing but it wasn't the real thing. He was soon resigned to the fact that if he wanted to train real Muay Thai in China, he would have to teach it. As a 30-year veteran of Thai Boxing and former World Champion, he is the most legitimate Thai Boxing expert in Beijing and arguably, the rest of mainland China!

At the end of 2005, Kru Vince met Prof. Chet Quint, an American black belt in Gracie Brazilian Jiujitsu who came to China to pioneer his martial art as well. By the middle of 2006, Prof. Quint and Kru Vince had teamed up to found Black Tiger Academy (Beijing). Within the past year, they had attracted over a hundred students (mainly foreigners and expatriates) in Brazilian Jiujitsu and Muay Thai and trained successful MMA fighters here in China.

They now run the Black Tiger training facility in the plush Jianwai Soho complex in the Central Business District (CBD) of Beijing.

This blog is a chronicle to Kru Vince's quest to promote and innovate Muay Thai kickboxing in China through events, instruction and various types of media.

Kru Vince's fight bio:

Muay Thai/Kickboxing pro record: 30 wins , 2 losses
Total fights (pro, am, non-sanctioned): 60 wins, 4 losses
MMA fights: 4 wins, 2 losses

Titles/Achievements:

2007 World Professional Muay Thai Federation Lightweight Division, King's Birthday (Thailand)
2007 World Professional Muay Thai Federation
Lightweight Division, Queen's Birthday (Thailand)
1995 World Muay Thai Association
World Welterweight Title
1994 International Kickboxing League
World Welterweight Title
1993 World Muay Thai Association North American Welterweight Title
1989 World Kickboxing Association California State Lightweight Title

Other related bio:

Founder, Black Tiger Thai Boxing Gym, San Diego, Calif.
Founder, Ringsports Productions, San Diego, Calif.
Co-Founder, Black Tiger Academy, Beijing, China
Co-Founder, Black Tiger MMA Team, Beijing, China
Producer, Black Tiger Media Productions, Beijing, China

Websites:

http://www.muaythaichina.com
http://www.blacktigerclub.com