The answer is no but the differences between them can be a little less clear, depending on how exactly one is referring to kickboxing. The word can be used very specifically to describe a sport with a certain set of rules but also as an umbrella term for any ring fighting contest that involves kicks. It originally came from full-contact karate and other eastern martial arts. This started in Japan and as it spread to the rest of the world, particularly in America, the influence of western boxing became more prevalent. Kickboxing also drew inspiration from Muay Thai, which is a martial art/fighting system from Thailand.
Like Kickboxing, Muay Thai uses kicks and the punches are also very similar to those found in western boxing but the main things that make Muay Thai combat different is that it uses the following techniques, not allowed in general kickboxing competitions.
- Knee Strikes
- Elbow Strikes
- Clinching - holding on to someone while striking
- Sweeps - taking someone to the ground by throwing and/or tripping
- Catching Kicks/Grabbing and Trapping the Leg
Muay Thai also differs from the traditional Asian non-grappling martial arts - Karate, Kung Fu, Tae Kwon Do, and all of the offshoots - in several ways. Muay Thai punches are, again, similar to those in western boxing whereas those other styles have a completely different system of punches and fighting stance. While the traditional martial arts feature dozens of different kicks, especially Tae Kwon Do, Muay Thai fighters mainly throw only 2 kinds (yes, there are certainly more than 2 but over 95% of the kicks you will see in a Muay Thai fight are the round kick and the front kick). Then there are the aforementioned elbows, knees, clinch and clinch fighting techniques
Beyond the strikes themselves, there are philosophical differences between the other common martial arts. Muay Thai is made for practical ring fighting and while there is a certain spirituality to it, it is subtle and not at the forefront of technique like it is with Karate in particular. There is no performance aspect to Muay Thai either, no Katas or Poomsaes (pre-arranged sequences of movements as a demonstration of skill). As such, Muay Thai does not have a belt system.
So while Kickboxing did integrate western boxing techniques for punches, its kicking system and fighting stance stayed pretty much the same, originating from Karate and later incorporating Tae Kwon Do kicks as well. As Muay Thai gained more worldwide recognition during the 80s, we started to get this cross-discipline superfights, where Karate and American kickboxing champs would arrange for special fights against top level Muay Thai boxers. It was somewhat of a precursor to the UFC, that would come a few years later.
The tricky part was getting both parties to agree to a set of rules. Fighters coming from kickboxing and traditional Asian martial arts did not want to get hit by knees and elbows nor have to deal with the clinch, which was even more unfamiliar to them. They would rather keep it strictly a punching and kicking contest. Some of the Thais accepted these terms and probably the most significant event was when Rick Roufus, then PKC and ISKA kickboxing champion, undefeated in the ring, took on Changpuek Kiatsongrit, who was not a belt holder and had less professional experience. What Changpuek did have, however, was an extremely powerful left kick.
Despite not being allowed to use half of his weapons (elbows/knees/clinch), Changpuek was able to get the American to agree to one stipulation - low kicks. At the time, low kicks were also not allowed in American kickboxing or many other martial arts tournaments. All kicks had to go to the mid-section or higher but for the first time on any significant stage, lower kicks to the legs would be allowed. The fight took place in Las Vegas, Nevada in November of 1988 and it would change what we consider to be kickboxing forever. It's a pretty interesting fight too. As a matter of fact, if you are still reading, I highly recommend checking it out below right now!
The ending was completely unfathomable to most. How could a fight end with low kicks, with the other guy being unable to stand up? Lots of people don't even know how many fights end with body shots, let along low kicks. And to a really casual fan, it made no sense at all. It was just not something you saw in any ring outside of Thailand, nor in streetlights, movies, nothing.
While initially, both Rick and his brother Duke were sour grapes, with Duke saying famously that the low kick didn't take any real skill to throw and it was a cheap way to win, they would come around and change their tune, later incorporating it into their style. They also realized that the side stance, commonly used in Tae Kwon Do, would never work against a Thai fighter because of those round kicks and begin to switch to more of a consistent boxing/Muay Thai stance. This would spread to the entire of sport of kickboxing over time. Eventually, the sport would absorb knee strikes from Muay Thai as well.
This fight also put Muay Thai on a much more global stage. Its popularity increased all over the world (and grew significantly in Thailand too) . People from Europe and America in particular, started training in the sport. Even when new, bigger kickboxing leagues formed, a lot of the fighters came from a Muay Thai background.
Kickboxing would influence Muay Thai as well. Not so much with new techniques but bringing back some of the older ones like spinning attacks (at least the spinning hammer/backfist), Superman/Cobra punch, and occasional use of the side kick. And both disciplines began to start considering defending each other, which certainly had an effect.
Just like any sport, both Muay Thai and kickboxing are always evolving but to reiterate, if we are talking about specific rules, watching a competition labeled as kickboxing, means that punches, kicks, knees and backfists are all allowed. Clinching or holding an opponent for any length of time is not allowed, nor is tripping or throwing them to the ground, nor catching/grabbing an opponent's leg after a kick. All of these things are allowed in any Muay Thai competition, as well as the thrice-aforementioned knee and elbow strikes. Sometimes there are other differences, based on individual events but those are main ones. The classes that we refer to as kickboxing on our website are actually Muay Thai, as we include all strikes as well as how to defend them.
As a side note, another famous, hybrid-rules Muay Thai vs. Kickboxing super fight, also from 1988. Sagat vs. Pete "Sugarfoot" Cunningham. The fought twice, with each winning one. In the first fight however, Sagat was allowed to catch and trap the kicking leg of Cunningham. This makes a huge difference, especially against such a prolific kicker like Sugarfoot. Amazingly, I cannot find footage of their first fight on YouTube but here is a pretty good breakdown and Peter Cunningham deserves a lot of credit for taking fights with martial artists from all disciplines in the early days before that was a thing.
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