The Challenger Muay Thai

The Challenger Muay Thai is a reality-based television series, nominated for the International Emmy Award for Best Non-Scripted Entertainment in 2012,[1][2] that follows 16 aspiring Muay Thai middleweight fighters,[3] from around the world, as they compete in a series of outdoor challenges and sanctioned matches held in Malaysia.

The Challenger Muay Thai
The Challenger Muay Thai
Created byRiaz Mehta
Presented byStephan Fox
Sonia Couling
Country of originSingapore
Original languageEnglish
No. of episodes13
Production
Executive producersRiaz Mehta
David M. Knox
Joel Lin
Eric Van Wagenen
Sam Gollestani
Running time45
Release
Original networkAXN
Original releaseSeptember 15 (2011-09-15) –
December 9, 2011 (2011-12-09)

Each week, the fighters will be subjected to a rigorous bout of training from their two trainers Hanarong and Nugget McNaught,[4] the "Weapon Of The Week" will be announced, determining the training excursus that will decide the fight of the week. Every match consists of five rounds, with each bout lasting between five and 15 minutes. Before each match, a fighter can train intensively up to eight hours a day, six days a week. The discipline and dedication invested by each fighter is undoubted.[4]

The winner received US$100,000 and bragging rights as "The Challenger Muay Thai Champion".[3][4][5][2]

The Challenger Muaythai was shown on AXN, Prime Time, every Thursday,[5] created by Riaz Mehta and produced by Imagine Group and The Group Entertainment, under sanctioning of the World Muaythai Council (WMC), the world's governing body for the sport of muaythai.[5] The hosts and mentors are two of the world's best muaythai trainers and one of Asia's best known TV celebrities.[3]

Contestants
Contestants Nickname Nationality Birthdate Height (cm)/Weight (kg)
Antoine Pinto "The Phenom" French/Thai 16/02/1991 183/67
Cedric Muller "Underground Samurai" French 13/09/1975 177/71
Cyrus Washington "Black Dynamite" American 10/28/1983 177/76
Fadi Merza "The Beast" Austrian 08/03/1978 180/72
Frank Giorgi "The Italian Stallion" Italian 22/01/1981 176/72.5
Ilya Grad "Archilles" Israeli 22/06/1987 192/75
Jason Woodham "The Handsome Hero" British 29/02/1984 182/72
Jesse Miles Lacombe "Smiles" Canadian 03/05/1983 175/75
Jordan Watson "Quadzilla" British 04/12/1987 175/71
Marco Pique "The Sniper" Dutch 09/01/1980 182/72
Mostafa Abdollahi "Persian Mos" Iranian 23/11/1982 180/72.5
Pidsanu Kunchat "Mardsua" Thai 10/05/1986 175/72.5
Michael Chase Corley "Cool Hand" American 07/12/1984 183/72
Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli "Golden Elbow" Malaysian 24/10/1989 177/69
Rhyse Saliba "Poison Dart" Australian 06/07/1992 178/73
Vuyisile Colossa "The Cheetah" South African 28/06/1982 178/73

Episode summary

Episode 1

Original airdate: September 15, 2011
The contestants, are introduced and brought to their living quarters in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia where they would be staying during the course of the competition. During the first training session, the fighters are introduced to the "Weapon Of The Week". The "Weapon Of The Week" is a training based excursus to decide the fight of the week.

Corey puts up a strong fight, but Colossa's kicks and punches prove too much for Michael. In the third round, a hard kick to Michael's thigh led to a knockout.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Conditioning, relating to the fighter's stamina and fitness
  • Challenge winner: Vuyisile Colossa
  • Match: Vuyisile Colossa VS Michael Chase Corey
  • Match winner: Vuyisile Colossa
  • Eliminated: Michael Chase Corey

Episode 2

Original airdate: September 22, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is revealed to be punching, where Muller and Fadi expressed keen interest in fighting this week. During deliberation, Muller was chosen as the strongest puncher. However, upon Muller's entrance into the ring, Stephan Fox commented that he sees Fadi as the superior puncher.

After 5 long, hard fought rounds of intense Muaythai action, Muller emerges victorious.

Colossa, for his outstanding win, enjoys an evening at Bila Bila restaurant at Sepang Golf Coast Resort.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Punching
  • Challenge winner: Cedric Muller
  • Match: Cedric Muller VS Fadi Merza
  • Match winner: Cedric Muller
  • Eliminated: Fadi Merza

Episode 3

Original airdate: September 29, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is the powerful and deadly weapon, the knee, which when executed well has the power to weaken and even cripple opponents. All 12 fighters seem eager and determined to show off their skills. After deliberation, Antoine was chosen as having the best knee within the villa. This was disagreed by the trainers, who prefer Ilya.

After 3 rounds, Antoine's die-hard performance secured him a position in the second round.

Muller, for his previous win, was excused from the daily training session to get rest to recuperate.

Episode 4

Original airdate: October 6, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is kicking. During the training session, Cyrus shows displeasure towards the training methods and decides not to take part in the rest of the training. As for the other fighters, after showcasing their kicks, there was a consensus that Kunchat was the strongest kicker. As Kunchat was chosen both by the fighters as well as the trainers, he had the power to choose his opponent. Rhyse was selected.

At the end of the five rounds, Kunchat came out on top with his beautiful Muaythai technique.

Muller and Antoine, both representing France and having won consecutively, was excused from training and enjoyed an evening at the Sepang Gold Coast beach.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Kicking
  • Challenge winner: Pidsanu Kunchat
  • Match: Pidsanu Kunchat VS Rhyse Saliba
  • Match winner: Pidsanu Kunchat
  • Eliminated: Rhyse Saliba

Episode 5

Original airdate:October 13, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is elbows. A quick decision was made during deliberation, that Faizal (i.e. "Golden Elbow") was the strongest contestant, and was agreed by both fighters and trainers. He chose Jesse as his opponent. It was tough for Jesse to begin with, as in order for him not to be qualified, he had to first lose four kilos.

In the end at the fifth round, Faizal's relentless attitude earns him a victory for his country, Malaysia.

Antoine celebrates his win by spending the evening t the digital city, I-City.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Elbow
  • Challenge winner: Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli
  • Match: Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli VS Jesse Miles Lacombe
  • Match winner: Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli
  • Eliminated: Jesse Miles Lacombe

Episode 6

Original airdate: October 20, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is clinching. Fighters who have yet to fight in the first round do their utmost to display their best clinching styles. At the time of decision, both the fighters and trainers choose Mosi. The surprise came when Mosi selected Jason as his opponent, when Mosi and Jason shared a strong friendship and pledged that they would never select each other.

After 2 rounds, Mosi knocks Jason out flat, and emerges victorious.

Stephan congratulates Faizal on his win, and gives him an afternoon to enjoy a small aircraft ride around the state of Selangor, Malaysia.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Clinching
  • Challenge winner: Mostafa Abdollahi
  • Match: Mostafa Abdollahi VS Jason Woodham
  • Match winner: Mostafa Abdollahi
  • Eliminated: Jason Woodham

Episode 7

Original airdate: October 27, 2011
The "Weapon Of The Week" is combinations. It was also revealed that the last two fights in the first round would be a double-header. During deliberation, the fighters were torn between Jordan and Marco whom they felt had the best combination. At the end, the fighters voted for Jordan, which was also the choice of the trainers. Jordan selected Cyrus as his opponent, which left Marco and Frank as the last fight in the first round.

Jordan and Cyrus were both fighters at the same level. At the end, Jordan won unanimously by points and sent Cyrus home.

The case was the same for Marco and Frank, where the fight was neck and neck. After the fifth and final round, Marco won on points.

Mosi was greeted by his wife, as a surprise reward from Stephan for his win the previous week. The two spent the day out enjoying each other's company.

  • Weapon Of The Week: Combinations
  • Challenge winner: Jordan Watson
  • Match: Jordan Watson VS Cyrus Washington
  • Match winner: Jordan Watson
  • Eliminated: Cyrus Washington
  • Match: Marco Pique VS Frank Giorgi
  • Match winner: Marco Pique
  • Eliminated: Frank Giorgi

Episode 8

Original airdate: November 4, 2011
With the double elimination of Cyrus and Frank in the previous week, 8 fighters still remain in the second round of the competition. They were then split into two teams, selected by their trainers Nong and Nugget.

Blue Team: Jordan, Kunchat, Faizal and Mosi
Red Team: Colossa, Marco, Antoine and Muller

At the matchup deliberation, Faizal was nominated to represent the Blue team, and Antoine for the Red team. The fifth round was the decisive round, which allowed Antoine to emerge victorious despite having lost on points up till then.

  • Match: Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli VS Pinto Antoine
  • Match winner: Pinto Antoine
  • Eliminated: Mohd Faizal Bin Ramli

Episode 9

Original airdate: November 11, 2011
Antoine's name is the first to be placed under the semi-finals column. Stephan revealed that the winner of the week's fight would be facing Antoine in the first semi-finals match.

After training, at deliberation, the Blue team chose Kunchat, whereas the Red team nominated Colossa to represent the teams respectively. Both fighters put up an unrelenting fight. It was at the end of five rounds that the judges decided that the victory should go to Kunchat.

  • Match: Pidsanu Kunchat VS Vuyisile Colossa
  • Match winner: Pidsanu Kunchat
  • Eliminated: Vuyisile Colossa

Episode 10

Original airdate: November 18, 2011
It is revealed during the gym session that the next matchup decision would set the final matchup, as there were only 2 fights and 4 fighters remaining in the quarterfinals.

The 3rd quarterfinal match is set to be Cedric versus Jordan. Both fighters started cautiously, till the end of the first round when Jordan swept Cedric off his feet with a swift low kick. With every round, Jordan executed his offense and defense perfectly, thus securing victory.

  • Match: Jordan Watson VS Cedric Muller
  • Match winner: Jordan Watson
  • Eliminated: Cedric Muller

Episode 11

Original airdate: November 25, 2011
As the match this week was decided due to last week's match up, Marco was concerned about his fighting ability due to the injury sustained at his shin. Midway during the match, Marco seemed to aggravate his previous injury further, but continued finishing the fight. In the end, Mosi claimed victory by judges' decision.

  • Match: Mostafa Abdollahi VS Marco Pique
  • Match winner: Mostafa Abdollahi
  • Eliminated: Marco Pique

Award

References
  1. "The Emmys In Brief: The Challenger Muaythai…next time?". www.ifmamuaythai.org. Nov 20, 2012.
  2. "The Challenger Muay Thai". allrites.com.
  3. "World Muaythai Council » The Challenger Muaythai". www.wmcmuaythai.org.
  4. L. Orosa, Rosalinda (September 16, 2011). "The Challenger Muaythai airs on AXN | Philstar.com". philstar.com. The Philippine Star.
  5. "The Challenger Muaythai Champion Emerges as Thailand's own MADSUA!!!". www.ifmamuaythai.org. Dec 9, 2011.
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