Lessons from the Library: How Clinch Beats Size, Sylvie Taking On a 30 lb Disadvantage (Patreon)

[Kevin writing] Above is my thorough going nearly frame by frame examination of one of my favorite wins of Sylvie's, Fight #228. Aside from the fact that several people have written to say that they learned a lot from the "breakdown", I wanted to write an accompanying article with the near hour long public video, for patrons, because there are very important principles to fighting included in the breakdown, principles that have been illustrated by many sessions in the Muay Thai Library. Because what we do here is committedly long form study, this video fits right in with that. But even more so because the fight illustrates things in the Library itself, hidden ways that the Muay Khao fighting style c an be used to overcome explicit disadvantages. In a sport where single pounds on weighin are issues for dispute, it is no small feat for Sylvie to give up 30% of her body weight vs an experienced, skilled opponent, and win. I wanted to draw this out for patrons a bit.
The first thing of importance is the use of Muay Khao pressure to destabilize fighting styles that like a little more space. There is a kind of Muay Khao dern that is relentless and suffocating. The dern of exhausting fighters like Langsuan and Samson Isaan (both of whom are in the Library). But, in this particular fight Sylvie is much closer to the Muay Khao strategy of Dieselnoi. There are several Muay Thai Library sessions with Dieselnoi, and in nearly all of them he talks about his Golden Tactic. Do not bring your weapons out in the early rounds. He swore by this. Instead, you crowd your opponent, make them show their offense. Check, counter, absorb their attacks, but make them uncomfortable by proximity. It would be in later rounds that Dieselnoi brought out his "thresher" (at least ideally). We can see something of this in how he fought Samart:

you can watch that here 
What is amazing about Sylvie's performance is that she employs the same style of attack, despite extreme differences in body-type. Instead of a tall, lanky spider of a man who can smother strikes, she's dramatically smaller than her opponent, and taking on early impacts. But...the method is the same. Proximity. Defense first. Pressure closeness in the pocket. Don't worry about dominance early. Your dominance is closeness. You can see Samart struggling with the distance in the early rounds vs Dieselnoi too. It isn't just body-type. It's a kind of psychological warfare. It's disruptive. 
The second move towards weapons is very different between Dieselnoi and Sylvie. Dieselnoi like long, spearing, corralling knees in space, with clinch finishes when he attacks. Sylvie instead using superior clinch technique, the control of the frame, posture and index of a fighter...and by the second round she is already into it, but the fight itself is a microcosm of the style Dieselnoi is always advocating for. It's his Old School Style.
The other dimension of this fight which is lesson giving is just how much clinch technique, technical prowess, can overcome size, height and strength, even against skilled opponents. She is not fighting someone clueless in clinch. And, her opponent's gym was extremely well versed in Sylvie's fighting style, having faced Sylvie maybe 10 times. But still, she was able to execute the plan. What the breakdown brings out is just how vital clinch skills can be in a traditional Muay Thai fight.
You can see some of Sylvie's clinch basics taught in her clinch seminar here, where she discusses size differences, and the techniques of framing:

watch Sylvie's clinch seminar here 
You can also watch the fight in real time, with Sylvie's commentary here:

watch Fight 228 with Sylvie's commentary here 

But the real gold in this is seeing the concrete application of Old School approaches to fighting, but a seriously committed fighter, vs tremendous odds, seeing how she created her own version of these influences...so that you can go back to her original sources, and make your own version of these lessons...or, if you are a different kind of fighter, at least educate yourself on the Muay Femeu vs Muay Khao dynamics, especially in regard to proximity fighting.
These are all the Dieselnoi sessions:
#48 Dieselnoi Chor. Thanasukarn - Jam Session (80 min) watch it here  
#30 Dieselnoi Chor Thanasukarn 2 - Muay Khao Craft  (42 min) watch it here  
#3 Dieselnoi  Chor Thanasukarn  - The King of Knees (54 min) - watch it here 
#76 Dieselnoi Chor Thanasukarn 4 - How to Fight Tall (69 min) watch it here

You can find all the Muay Khao sessions in the Library here 
You can find all the Clinch oriented sessions in the Muay Thai Library here 

These are some strong clinch dern sessions to look at as well:

#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.
#8 Sangtiennoi Sor Rungroj - Advanced Clinch (52 min) watch it here
The Golden Age Lumpinee and Rajadamnern Champion, a legendary Muay Khao fighter who fought all the greats instructs on the finer points of clinch technique. Small differences that make big differences. Advanced tips on the swim-in and turn, and the importance of going from long distance techniques to short distance grab and lock.
#56 Tanadet Tor. Pran49 - Mastering Long Clinch (63 min) watch it here
This is one of the most interesting and, if mastered, dominant clinch positions one can use, and the entire session is devoted to it. I filmed with young Long Clinch master Tanadet, and discover all the small refinements he created that turned what for many fighters is just a transitional position, into an entire system of attack. This is a rare session, capturing a little known and used clinch system.
#45 Langsuan Panyutapum - Monster Muay Khao Training (66 min) watch it here
One of the greatest knee fighters who ever fought, 1987 Fighter of the Year Langsuan shows how an elite Muay Khao fighter of his day trained. This session is powerful on the basics that elevate the body and mind, at high repetition, allowing the relentless, pressing style that made Langsuan the fighter nobody wanted to fight.
#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.