We left two days before the actual event for an area somewhere in the middle of nowhere in Issan. It was actually nice when we arrived. We all had houses to share with the team, plus we had a swimming pool. It was nice overall.
The following morning, the weight cut started, so everyone was running in sauna suits. The only issue we had was that it was rather cold, so it took ages to get the water weight off.
We left for the prison for the weigh-ins. Going in, the rules were clear: no phones, no valuable things, no money. You basically had to leave everything outside in a locker.
We walked to the designated area and saw all the prisoners sitting on the other side of the ring. They were waiting for us. We had to wait opposite them, so while we waited, we were all looking at who we were fighting.
The prison fight series: weighing in Thai style
The weigh-ins got postponed because the camera was supposed to be there with our fight shorts. Most of us waited 30 minutes dehydrated outside while the temperatures were rising. Eventually, the promoter told everyone to get the doctor’s check and the weight check because he became mad at how unprofessional the film crew was.
We were offered food made by the prisoners once we checked our weight and took all the pre-fight pictures. Another section of that prison specialized in cooking, so they prepared the most well-known Thai dishes for everyone and brownies.
We basically ate together with the prisoners of the Muay Thai section and got to know them. Because, believe it or not, they were just as curious about us as we were about them.
The majority were in there for drugs, mostly possession of methamphetamines, and got really long sentences. My opponent was in there for murder, something I never talked about with him until after the fight. But that charge made a lot of people uncomfortable, and no one wanted to ask anything about it.
After staying there for a couple of hours, we went back to the hotel and relaxed because there were 36 hours between the weigh-in and the fight.
Most prisoners asked us if we could give them pairs of shorts and ankle guards because they never got any from the prison.
When we handed them those the next day, the guards didn’t interfere. This “prison” was a good-behavior facility. The people who are in there have the opportunity to go back into society. Something they all really want. This wasn’t like the main prison in Bangkok, where all the real criminals are.
The prison fight series: fight day.
We arrived four hours before the actual event started. Like always in Thailand, being way too early while doing nothing is preferred over going an hour early. What better things do you have to do?
While we were waiting, we saw the prisoners build a market. There was free food and drink available. What surprised me was that there were a lot of seats in front of the ring. This show was behind closed doors, but there were actually people coming to watch, besides some family members of the prisoners that were fighting.
Other than that, there was a whole camera crew and an English-speaking commentary team. During the hours we had to kill, we just relaxed and spent time with the prisoners. I even went to greet my opponent’s mom and grandmother.
The prison fight series: the warm-up and the actual fight
The warm-up
I found out an hour before that I was opening the card rather than fighting in the middle of it. So we prepared everything to walk out, which got delayed as well. The female prisoners from another section had prepared an opening show, but somehow they were not there, and they couldn’t decide how they would deal with it.
So a member of the camera crew came over in panic and told us not too worry. He told us to wait 10 more minutes. Eventually, we waited 30 minutes, which was the perfect amount of time for 3 warm-ups, 3 cool-downs, and a couple of chats with the prisoners. During the whole period, I noticed my opponent was way more nervous than me. I told him to relax and that it was just a fight.
What I didn’t know at that time was that he had three years left before he could regain his freedom. Winning this fight meant that three years would be reduced to one year.
The actual fight
This was my first time fighting three rounds, so I had no clue what to expect. He started off quite aggressive with his right kick. I blocked and fired back, and he caught my kick and swept me. I remember thinking, “So this is what they mean with start fast.” After that, I got the sweep back, and I quickly figured out that he didn’t have that many weapons but really strong bones. On paper, this was the closed round.
After round 1, my corner said I was winning. Round two was a very one-sided round. He had some moments, but he got rocked by a flying knee and a follow-up cross. When I sat down after round 2, I saw my shins all purple and bruised. He had strong bones, and this was a comeback fight after a 10-month layoff. My shins weren’t conditioned; that was clear.
At the start of round three, to my surprise, he started moving backwards. Whoever moves back in the last round in Thailand is leading on the scorecards. I looked confused at my corner, and they just signaled to go forward. I did, but in round 3, I felt I wasn’t fully recovered from training hard while being sick during camp. I definitely couldn’t push as much as I wanted too.
After three rounds, the judges gave him the decision. Which I wrote about in another post.
This is the end of the second part. In the third and last part, we’ll cover the aftermath of the prison fight.
On training and fighting in Thailand
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Until next time.
Alex
