What do you think?

Muay Thai. I studied for a while and learned how to use my knees and elbows coreectly as well as in fighting. Also with a knowledge of TKD kicks it give you better understanding of the ways you can attack with the feet.

Depends under what rules,

A thai boxer would probably beat a kickboxer under thai rules..

And a kickboxer would probably beat a thai boxer under kickboxing rules..

And if you just told them to go for it, who knows, everybugger cross trains now anyway.

Besides, most Thais are about as tall as my sternum...

As in all things, it lies with the practitioner and fate, not the system, or style.

I always remind the people I train with. No matter the system, no matter the person, on any given day a white belt [civilian] can walk in off the street and clean your clock.

i've taken muy thai and it's hard core!
i'm not saying i'd want to fight a kick boxer, but between the two, a seasoned muy thai student would probaly kill me...
muy thai focuses more on your whole body as a weapon,knees, elbows, feet, whatever can attack faster than the opponent. muy thai is more about getting your opponent down and out as quickly as possible through technique and speed.

I think kickboxing of the 70's didnt have a hope in hell of defeating Muay Thai in the ring even under Kickboxing rules, but now I dunno. Kickboxing has taken the kick fom Muay Thai. I also done kickboixing once upon a time. Its too "jumpy" in my opinion and to side on... I like ease, full frontal and relaxed approach of Muay Thai, not moving around too much but always moving my body (why Thaiboxers look like there are constantly bobbing up and down) I noticed in Kickboxing the side on approach left my kidneys wide open and left one leg in an awkward place incase I need it to either block with or kick. Not to mention it seems too "stiff". Kickboxers tend to look like starched clothing when in the ring.

In kickboxing you wear shin pads and foot gear, I aint knocking the sport but you dont have to worry about a ruptured kidney or blocking a kick with your shin.

But its hard to tell now because kickboxing uses so much of Muay Thai its almost becoming like the damn sport.

(generalising) Pure kickboxing vs pure Muay Thai, kickboxing will fail because there is a major lack in conditioning.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by MuayThai:
I think kickboxing of the 70's didnt have a hope in hell of defeating Muay Thai in the ring even under Kickboxing rules, but now I dunno. Kickboxing has taken the kick fom Muay Thai. I also done kickboixing once upon a time. Its too "jumpy" in my opinion and to side on... I like ease, full frontal and relaxed approach of Muay Thai, not moving around too much but always moving my body (why Thaiboxers look like there are constantly bobbing up and down) I noticed in Kickboxing the side on approach left my kidneys wide open and left one leg in an awkward place incase I need it to either block with or kick. Not to mention it seems too "stiff". Kickboxers tend to look like starched clothing when in the ring.

In kickboxing you wear shin pads and foot gear, I aint knocking the sport but you dont have to worry about a ruptured kidney or blocking a kick with your shin.

But its hard to tell now because kickboxing uses so much of Muay Thai its almost becoming like the damn sport.

(generalising) Pure kickboxing vs pure Muay Thai, kickboxing will fail because there is a major lack in conditioning.[/QUOTE]

i fight kickboxers frequently under muay thai rules and their rules ie. no elbows, knees, kicking above the waist, and find them worthy opponents in this context only. kickboxers dont know the clinch, knees or elbows and have great difficulty with lower body kicks.
they are definitely borrowing heavily from muay thai these days and i suspect that within the next 10 yrs, the 2 will be very difficult to distinguish from each one another.