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- Jul 31, 2011
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I understand your point of view and I have a lot of respect for MT. It's a beautiful and skilled sport.Leanback is a dangerous move, that's why they teach it in more advanced classes, and not at beginners. But they don't teach slips at all. Most of the guys that used it, picked it from cross-training box or Kbox. Slips are not a basic technique in MT, nor an advanced technique. And there are reasons for that. Again, some times it may work, and some people may use it a lot, but its like me saying why don't boxers use techniques from Prince or R Jones... It's not usable for the average boxer as slips are not usable for average Nak Muay (and even champions).
MT is around for some years now, they know what is working and what's not. Yes, there are some stuffs that are kept for tradition, some stuffs are kept for the gamblers, but even those have a logical useful explanation. I don't mind when people are asking why bob and weave, or slips, or Philly shield are not used in MT. But been a 6 month novice, acting like they know better than all the krus with years and years of experience, its getting old after a while. (to be clear i don't mean you, i' ll gladly exchange views with people like you).
It's like all those new MMA guys, going to boxing gyms, and ask them why they don't do stuff there like Connors does...
I feel like there is room within MT for slightly different approaches. Not radical, but different nonetheless. I know it's very traditional, but looking at someone like Dieselnoi and Samart, you see very different skillsets within the same sport. Most Thais don't practice a lot of slipping, and it's true that it's not a necessity within the format. There are other ways to deal with punches effectively. My contention is that, that doesn't mean that head movement, adapted for the format, is not valid at all in MT. I hate to sound like a broken record, but I've already pointed out a few guys who have used it well at the highest level. It's not a necessity, but it can work very well. To that end it is a personal prefence.
I feel one of the reasons it is not used has as much to do with culture, tradition and ruleset as it has to do with the effectiveness. It does seem like it's turning a bit again, and that more Thais are supplementing with boxing, right? Just like the golden age. Maybe you can educate me a bit more on that.