Yodwicha Por Boonsit 3 - Spearing the Middle, Fighting With Rhythm (66 min) (Patreon)

I was very excited to get more of Yodwicha for the Muay Thai Library, not only because he's an excellent teacher and I love his Muay Khao style, but also because he's developed a great deal over the time since we last filmed with him a few years ago. He is, perhaps, of the last generation of true Muay Khao of contemporary stadium Muay Thai (although I hope maybe we're just experiencing an air-bubble and it will come back in full force). But since departing from the Bangkok stadium scene (having been co-winner of the prestigious Sportwriter's Fighter of the Year with Muay Femeu phenom Sangmanee Sor. Tiempo, back in 2012 at the age of 16) and winning the Omnoi belt (126 lbs), Lumpinee belt (130 lbs) and twice the Thailand belt (135 lbs & 140 lbs) he has had great success on international-style promotions, which required him to change up his style quite a bit, since they either flat out don't allow clinching and locking, or just don't favor it. (He also is the current WBC Muay Thai World Champion at 154 lbs.) So, in this session we go over quite a bit of strategy and technique for how his style has developed and changed for that kind of fighting.

Yodwicha's first love will always be his locking, turning, Muay Khao style. It will always be my love, too. So I'm stoked that we started out with that as well. We go over how punches and knees work together, what to do when locking isn't permitted, how to handle kickers, punchers, and fellow knee fighters, and he instructs me on what bagwork should be used for in training.

What to Look Out For: 

1) The Classic Lock: Yodwicha starts right out with the classic forearm lock, using the blade of the forearm bone to squeeze your opponent into a painful submission.

2) If You Can't Knee, Spin: Yodwicha has a fantastic side-control in his particular style of clinch and this is magnificent when executed with a solid turning of the opponent, wrenching and spinning them, even if you can't knee.

3) Setting Up for Punches: this works as clinch entry anywhere, whether you can stay locked or whether you have to disengage and start again, or even if you don't ever lock. Punch to close distance and get your opponent stressed, knee to drop their hands, then grab. You can repeat this over and over, if you don't lock.

4) The Air Lock: I don't know what else to call Yodwicha's particular dern, or how he closes space on an opponent. He likes to take a solid step forward as his opponent is striking, whether they land a kick or a punch, or even a knee, and that step forward and closing of space just sucks all the air out of the room for the opponent. Like being blasted out of the air lock.

5) Don't Bother Pivoting: Yodwicha doesn't give a damn if his opponent is charging straight forward. He takes a single stride back, bounces off the back foot and attacks - or he just catches you with a knee straight up the middle. I love that he doesn't Matador for anyone.

6) Upper Body Guard: he never drops his guard, even for kicks, teeps and knees. The guard stays unchanged. He says you never have to worry about anything if you protect yourself first, so for his teeps, knees, kicks, anything his guard stays more or less unmoved.

7) Hydroplaning Dern: when Yodwicha comes forward - and he's always coming forward - he uses his front leg to block, fake, teep, and switch step to knee. These all look exactly the same to each other, because his front leg "bounce" that a lot of fighters utilize is really high. When his front leg is raised, he's kind of hydroplaning forward on the back leg. It's incredibly fast and relentless.

8) Posture in the Clinch: this is near the end and it's less a technique than a rule of composure for Thai scoring. Keep your hips in and your head up, within reason of protecting yourself. Yodwicha and Petdam both agree that, while body locks are an awesome skill, they are no longer rewarded in Thai scoring. So, Yodwicha shows me two very good moves for escaping a face-smoosh in the clinch (get back to squared up) and how to use a terrible position of being face-smooshed to snap your opponent into their own losing position (where they're in double under-hook and you're pinching their arms to their body from the outside).

There are tons of small details in this session that I try to bring out in the voiceover, so they can't all be listed here. From bits of advice on which positions are best, strategies for fighting styles, how to generate more power on a knee or turn your opponent, how to rip them into an off-balance position off of a caught teep, etc. You'll see. And the last bit is a revelation for me on how to use Bagwork. I've been here 8 years and this is a very, very new revelation for me. I made a Sylvie's Technique Vlog to really expand on what that realization is, and you can watch that, but the last 11 minutes or so of this session are Yodwicha instructing me on this change in perception and use of Bagwork.

To See What I Took in Terms of Bagwork From This Session Watch My Technique Vlog:

watch and read about my Technique Vlog, lessons I learned first from the legend Wangchannoi, and then learned more of from Yodwicha: Sylvie's Technique Vlog: How to Use Bagwork in Thailand 

Edited Session Stills To Give a Glimpse

If you enjoyed this session, other Muay Thai Library sessions on a similar theme:

#4 Yodwicha 1 - Clinch and Muay Khao (Knee) Specialist (35 min) - watch it here

Yodwich shared the Fighter of the Year award as only a 16 year old, and his success in the Lumpinee ring made him one of the most feared clinch fighters in Thailand. In this session he goes through his favorite Muay Khao techniques, shows why he prefers side-attack locks, and turns.

#10 The Clinch Techniques of Yodwicha - Session 2 (34 min) watch it here

This is my second session with Yodwicha, you can see the first further down below. This one really gets into the specifics of clinch technique and defense. One of the best clinch fighters in Thailand, co-Fighter of the Year, sharing his unique attack style.

#77  Kru Diesel F.A. Group - The Art of Knees (84 min) watch it here

Perhaps no single kru has had more success teaching the Muay Khao style than Kru Diesel. From Fighter of the Year Yodwicha, to the most decorated fighter Petchboonchu, his students disabled the elite Muay Femeu tacticians with ease. In this special session you learn the secrets of his knees and clinch, in real time breakdowns and elucidation.

#83 Thailand Pinsinchai 2 - The Beauty of Clinch (57 min) watch it here

In Kru Thailand's first session in the Library he taught all the principles of his femeu style, in this session, his second in the Library, he breaks down all the things necessary for his dominant clinch attack. Spend an hour learning the techniques that make clinch turns and damaging knees possible. All of it is balance and rhythm at close range.

#76 Dieselnoi Chor Thanasukarn 4 - How to Fight Tall (69 min) watch it here

There several sessions with the King of Knees in the Muay Thai Library, this is the fourth, but this is the first one where he gets the chance to teach a tall, long fighter like he was. If you are a tall fighter this is the session you don't want to miss. He is arguably the GOAT, an in this session he unfolds his entire fighting system of knee fighting pressure and distance control.

#81 Chamuakpet Hapalang 2 - Muay Khao Internal Attacks (65 min) watch it here

One of the all time greats gives his 2nd session of the Library. 9x Lumpinee and Rajadamnern champion, 1985 Fighter of the Year, a man who took belts from both Samart and his brother Kongtoranee, his Muay Thai has been lauded as one of the best that have ever been. In this session he teaches his rising KO out knee, straight up the center, his philosophy of grips, pulls and elbows in the clinch, and just in punching range. Not to be missed.

#59  Satanmuanglek Numpornthep - Beautiful Clinch Throws (65 min) watch it here

This session is focused on clinch throws. Satanmuanglek Numpornthep is an active fighter, both in Muay Thai and – in recent years – Western Boxing (he boxes under the name Satanmuanglek CP Freshmart, and already has a boxing title to his name - note, you can take privates with him at Chatchai's world famous Sasakul Boxing Gym).

#41  Samson Isaan - The Art of Dern Fighting (64 min) watch it here

To "dern" in Thai is to "walk", which means basically to just come forward no matter what, to create a relentlessness. Voted Fighter of the Year in 1991, Samson Isaan was one of the great Dern Fighters of the Golden Age, and in this session he shows his forward pulsing techniques which are meant to just overwhelm his opponent. Also a great session for pressure Southpaw fighters.

You can also find hours and hours of clinch video resources here in this thread: Clinch Resources