With the arrival of AKA Thailand on Phuket, the island is now home to the largest mixed martial arts (MMA) training facility in Southeast Asia.
AKA Thailand is the first global gym of American Kickboxing Academy (AKA), which opened its doors more than 30 years ago in San Jose, California. The team has a history of producing skilled fighters from the ground up. With indoor and open air training facilities measuring more than 1000 square metres and a dedicated fitness and weight room, AKA Thailand is the largest MMA gym in Southeast Asia and the facility aims to attract some of the world's best fighters through a comprehensive training programme. Classes include traditional Muay Thai, MMA, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu (BJJ) and strength and conditioning for all levels from beginner to professional.
The Muay Thai program is housed inside a 560 square metre open-air training facility, equipped with two 7.2 metre Muay Thai rings, heavy bags, pull-up bars and a high definition CCTV system that can broadcast training and VIP sessions live on the AKA Thailand website. The MMA and BJJ programmes are held inside the main building, the largest indoor climate-controlled MMA/BJJ training facility in Thailand, which features more than 280 square feet rolling space covered with training mats. The gym runs a popular live broadcast almost daily, which is seen by some 10.000 viewers.
The team of trainers include local and foreign MMA and Muay Thai fighters with international fighting experience such as Mike Swick, MMA team coach and trainer and 14 Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) fights; Marcio “Gracinha” Cesar, MMA fighter, black belt BJJ under coach Cristiano Marcello; Kru Chalee, Muay Thai and boxing trainer with more than 375 fights and Kru Sid, Muay Thai master. AKA Thailand regularly attracts professional fighters such as Mark Hunt and Soa Palelei who come for their training camps leading up to big UFC fights.
Combining traditional martial arts such as Muay Thai, BJJ and Judo, MMA is the fastest growing sport in the world with a global audience of more than 700 million people. Mainstream leagues such as the UFC and ONE Championship are broadcasted to hundreds of millions of viewers who watch fighters knockout their opponents or force them into submission using locks, chokes and arm bars.
Far from merely a brute pasttime, MMA is a highly sophisticated sport that adheres to the strict social codes prevalent in traditional martial art such as discipline and respect and the mental and spiritual development of fighters is of high importance. As a result, MMA is gaining popularity as a mainstream sport and an estimated three million children under the age of 13 are now taking MMA classes around the USA.
The Sponsorship Experts, Paul Poole (South East Asia) Co., Ltd.
will be managing sponsorship and partnership marketing for AKA Thailand 2016. We have a number of commercial sponsorship and partnership opportunities available for brands and businesses wanting to integrate with this high profile training facility as well as many other opportunities to create bespoke events for your brand or business.
Paul Poole (South East Asia) Co., Ltd. is an independent marketing consultancy based in Bangkok, Thailand specialising in commercial sponsorship and partnership marketing, working with both rights holders and brands - acting as a catalyst by bringing them together and maximising the relationship.
We have packaged, sold and managed sponsorship and partnership opportunities for a wide range of rights holders and worked with many of the world’s leading brands to source and engage the right sponsorships and partnerships for them to maximise.
