Is James still training with you guys? He seems to have dropped off the website and no fights booked for him? What's the go?

Country: Australia

yea was wondering that myself ,always looked forward to watching james fight

Country: spain

I believe he has gone home to Australia.

Country: Thailand

James went back home to Perth. After so many fights, he needs a rest.

Country: Thailand

Last time I spoke to him in December, he was going to be there for a year and had plans for Lumpinee. Now he has half a dozen fights then goes home?

Country: Australia

I can't speak for James. I'm sure he will come on here and explain.

But what i can say, Its not easy to do this day in and day out. I've been here 6 months and i have it a little easier. I have a place to stay on my own but no fancy apartment. I'm talking cold water and a matress as a bed. and i saved a good bit of cash although it runs out very quickly and i still find it hard living. Not to mention keeping up with the training. I've had days i've been that sore i can't get out of bed physically.

James did it old school came back with just a bag of clothes and training gear and was living in the house with the Thai's and living under there rules, I can only imagine how hard that would be. language barrier being a big one.

I have no doubt James will be following his dream where ever he goes. Some people may take him the wrong way by what he says sometimes. Hell i'll admit the first time i meet him i was thinking whats he been smoking. But once you get to know him thats just the way he motivates himself for fighting and not the actual person he is.

If anyone wants to follow his fighting i'm sure you can catch up with him on facebook and he would more than appreciate the support.

P.S i aplogise for my lack of spelling and grammer.

Country: Thailand, Chalong

Perth? I Thought he was from Brisbane? If you are here in Perth James and your still training, let us know what gym your at. .

Country: OZ

hey everyone its me james yes i have left rawai,rawai is a great camp and has a very good gym and i thank them for everything they have done for me i would not be the fighter i'am today if it was not for tuk and all the trainers who put time in to me and diana for a good friend i could talk to and she would help me with whatever just training like the thai's and living like them and how they treat eachother mentaly and psyicaly will take its toll on anyone and it was time for a rest and to go home and spend some time with my family get me back in focus and then im good to go again i have to finish what i started this time when i go back to thailand i will be training with a friend of mine in bangkok so anyone who wants to keep in touch get on facebook and punch in james thunder polodna thanks chris you are a good man and i wish you the best my friend and yes my family live in perth i live in brisbane anyway i have said my bit and wish everyone the best at rawai muay thai james

Country: australia

Good Luck James, Take Care ;)

I actually wrote something about this recently:

http://mtpmagazine.blogspot.com/2010/03/so-you-want-to-be-professional-fighter.html

Trying to make a living as a fighter in Thailand is NOT easy.

Country: Thailand

As James points out in his article, boxers get very little to fight in Phuket (although it's more compared to the rest of Southern Thailand). Anyways, as a sponsored fighter, our boxers at Rawai can receive free room and board as well as free training. No need to pay rent or pay for food. So they can save their meager winnings. And Phuket does offer the unique opportunity to fight often.

Country: Thailand

i think its fair to say that you wouldnt earn much as a fighter. i find it odd that they would stop u having sex..sounds abit over kill.

End of the day nobody can stop you, But if you live in the fighters house, There are rules to follow and others to consider. I.e you share a room with the other fighters and there is a curfew. This is how it's done out here.

Some people believe having sex so close to a fight affects your performance. This is what they believe here. Its not as if your banned just not so close to a fight.

Great write up fair play!!

Country: Ireland (Dublin)

yeah but its the quality of fights that are a problem. 99% of the fights are set up to benefit the gambling touts and/or drunk spectators.
Thats why u get undersized thais with no training or skills but have had 30 fights (all foreigner beatdowns). Thais with a 100+ fights ,masquerading as beginners, taking a dive for the promoter but not before taking their pound of flesh by kicking the shit outof you for a round or two.
You get some Thais who come in for a legit fight but failing to knock the guy out in the first round say "fuck it" and take a dive. Either from being mentally weak or to avoid damage so that they can fight again next week or more importantly ...go work the next day.
You get foreigners who lie about their weight and their records.
The fights arent setup for the fighters benefit.

could agree with you more....

ok ? i do see where ur coming from in some instances.....however for example the match up between daniel barber and a thai earlier in the week, u think this was rigged too?? u think the thai showed no heart here and no will to win???

i thought it was a fantastic match up with bags of heart on both sides and the match could have gone either way until maybe the last round.