Possible muay Thai mcdojo

**Smackjack** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 10:05am

For starters I put this in the MABS section because under the subcategories this matched the description and questions I'm going to ask the general public.

Let me spit some knowledge on you first.

My Thai/bjj/judo gym just recently closed due to the fact they were on a sublease in a gym and the gym who was leasing could not pay rent. Before it had closed down an attorney was involved and the equipment was recovered.

The gym was ran by a purple belt(who's name I won't give out until I did a review) with no cage experience, but was a mundials/naga champ. So my instruction on his muay Thai was something to think about.

I've done muay Thai for nearly 4-5 years off and on between moves. Never competed but trained like I was going to but I need my head relaxed while in college.

Here are the things I would like to speculate that could be possible mcdojoism.

-the main coach happens to be the only coach
-he's never done a cage fight not even an Ammy or a smoker
-his muay Thai instruction is uncredited meaning he doesn't say where he got it from
-during sparring he let's people fight 100%(everyone goes 100% because of this it's almost similar to fighting, I've seen people get knocked out or rocked every sparring session)
-during sparring he doesn't stress the importance of headgear. So people get hurt constantly.
-during sparring we aren't allowed to kick to the head. Period. Not even controlled when both sparring partners are in agreement. Which fucks my game up drastically considering I come from a Krotty/TKD background before I took up muay Thai a few years back.
- his teaching techniques are questionable, he refers to chun flow drills and some aikido, we even did an aikido drill. Finding out later he comes from an aikido background
- he goes out to eat and invites select members and rumor has it he bashes and talks about everyone else.
- he also sends emails like this for updates
Team,

I just finished a great work out at 24 hour Fitness and now on the way to Memorial Park for a run.

On the flip side I was offered to attend a Gracie barra academy and keep my rank as well, I roll with a brazillian friend of mine who is a 4 stripes purple. The Thai instruction is ran by someone who competes. But do I really want to want to pay out to all of that Gracie ****? The positive side is I get to train at other Gracie barra.

Is my dojo a possible bullshido or should I switch gyms?

**RurikGreenwulf** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 12:42pm

Go to the place ran by the competitor you are going to have better feedback
Also the place where they go 100% is an awful place light sparring is important to develop technique

**Smackjack** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 3:29pm

They just relocated. I'm not sure what to do. :Baww: if I get enough feedback on here and reasoning I'll go to the place were the guy competes.

**alex** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 3:36pm

yeah any place they go 100% al the time and people are getting knocked out should be avoided. you wont see ANY top level gym always going 100%, if ever.

**Smackjack** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 3:39pm

The things is that's what attracted me to them. After a while I found myself getting hurt and more time at home than training. Also they throw knees during sparring to the stomach and leg area. The Thai gym I went to before they didn't allow this to prevent injuries. Do other Thai gyms allow knees during sparring?

**alex** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 3:42pm

we tend to do clinch sparring seperately, depending on the skill level of the fighters, because yeah a misplaced knee is a one way trip to broken ribsville. easier to control. plus, clinch fighting is a pretty important part of muay thai anyway. we get a lot of guys from other gyms who neglect it come along for some training and have sore necks for a week afterwards.

always going full power will retard your growth. youll be afraid to try anything new for fear of being punished for it. its a **** idea. dont go there.

**Smackjack** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 4:00pm

Originally Posted by Alex

we tend to do clinch sparring seperately, depending on the skill level of the fighters, because yeah a misplaced knee is a one way trip to broken ribsville. easier to control. plus, clinch fighting is a pretty important part of muay thai anyway. we get a lot of guys from other gyms who neglect it come along for some training and have sore necks for a week afterwards.

always going full power will retard your growth. youll be afraid to try anything new for fear of being punished for it. its a **** idea. dont go there.

My thoughts exactly. They throw non skilled fighters in there as well with their guard completely open the entire time. I was unaware they did clinch until I was put in one, and sometimes they do throws and the coach sometimes let's it slide.

**Neo Sigma** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 8:05pm

What Alex said. There's a time and place to get in there and bang it out, but that's not every day, every time. Also, the trainer sounds like a prick, and if you don't like or respect the people you're working with, you're not going to enjoy it.

FYI, it's completely possible for a gym to be crap without being a mcdojo(in it for the money) or bullshido(false claims, fraudulent credentials). For instance, only having one coach is pretty common in smaller gyms. And it's also fairly normal for muay thai fighters to never have done anything in a cage. If they have no ring experience, there's a pretty big red flag. That said, the place sounds shitty anyway. Go somewhere else.

**Smackjack** · Posted On: 5/30/2012 10:38pm

Originally Posted by Neo Sigma

What Alex said. There's a time and place to get in there and bang it out, but that's not every day, every time. Also, the trainer sounds like a prick, and if you don't like or respect the people you're working with, you're not going to enjoy it.

FYI, it's completely possible for a gym to be crap without being a mcdojo(in it for the money) or bullshido(false claims, fraudulent credentials). For instance, only having one coach is pretty common in smaller gyms. And it's also fairly normal for muay thai fighters to never have done anything in a cage. If they have no ring experience, there's a pretty big red flag. That said, the place sounds shitty anyway. Go somewhere else.

With the above said what category would this be placed in? I'll ride out my months session I paid for and talk to my brazillian friend.

But what would be the pros and cons of a Gracie barra school?