There are a couple of boxing stadiums in Chiangmai with nightly matches all with different boxers, and you'll either come across one of the numerous flyers or be handed one while walking through the
Old City.
We went to a match at
Thaphae Boxing Stadium, located on
Moonmuang Road near
Thapae Gate in the east of the Old City.
Tickets are available for sale at the door before the match at
400 baht a pop or
600 baht for ringside VIP seats. Matches start at
9 pm and lasts til
midnight usually. Arrive
15-30 minutes early and you'll be led to your seat. Be prepared for the seemingly never-ending traditional music they play all throughout. A pathetic baby cup of free drink is included and drinks inside are
100 baht for a big Chang
beer and
120+ baht for a Smirnoff or
cocktails.
Upon seeing the shabby chairs and tables, I was a little doubtful about the matches, but thankfully the fights were very entertaining, even though I'm not into boxing at all. The first ceremonial dance didn't start until nearly half past 9 before a fake round of WWF/WWE style boxing. After that, there are
7 fights in total, including 2 matches with female boxers.
Halfway through the night, we got to see a ridiculous yet hilarious bout of blindfolded group boxing.
All the matches are Thai against Thai except for the final match, when an Egyptian boxer knocked out his Thai opponent.
Although quite exciting, none of the matches were overly violent as far as boxing goes. Even though most of the boxers appeared to be quite young, there weren't any children involved, unlike the boxing matches I saw in Phuket. What a relief! Some betting was going on, with random Thai guys coming around asking if you want to place bets, if you're into that.
Tickets are available for sale at the door before the match at 400 baht a pop or 600 baht for ringside VIP seats. Matches start at 9 pm and lasts til midnight usually. Arrive 15-30 minutes early and you'll be led to your seat. Be prepared for the seemingly never-ending traditional music they play all throughout. A pathetic baby cup of free drink is included and drinks inside are 100 baht for a big Chang beer and 120+ baht for a Smirnoff or cocktails.
Halfway through the night, we got to see a ridiculous yet hilarious bout of blindfolded group boxing.
All the matches are Thai against Thai except for the final match, when an Egyptian boxer knocked out his Thai opponent.
Although quite exciting, none of the matches were overly violent as far as boxing goes. Even though most of the boxers appeared to be quite young, there weren't any children involved, unlike the boxing matches I saw in Phuket. What a relief! Some betting was going on, with random Thai guys coming around asking if you want to place bets, if you're into that.
