Tony Jaa:
Tony Jaa born 5 February 1976, is a Thai martial artist, actor, action choreographer, stuntman, director, and traceur. His films include Ong-Bak: Muay Thai Warrior (2003), Tom-Yum-Goong (2005), Ong Bak 2: The Beginning (2008), Furious 7 (2015) and SPL II: A Time for Consequences (2015). In his youth, Jaa watched films by Bruce Lee, Jackie Chan and Jet Li at temple fairs, which inspired him to learn martial arts. He practiced the techniques in his father’s rice paddy. “What they [Lee, Chan, and Li] did was so beautiful, so heroic that I wanted to do it too,” Jaa told Time in a 2004 interview. “I practiced until I could do the move exactly as I had seen the masters do it.”
Jaa began training in Muay Thai at his local temple at age 10. By 15, he was a protégé of stuntman and action film director Panna Rittikrai. Panna had instructed Jaa to attend Maha Sarakham College of Physical Education in Maha Sarakham Province from which he graduated with a bachelor’s degree. Jaa initially worked as a stuntman for Muay Thai Stunt for 14 years, appearing in many of Rittikrai’s films. He doubled for Sammo Hung when the martial-arts movie actor made a commercial for an energy drink that required him to grasp an elephant’s tusks and somersault onto the elephant’s back. He was also a stunt double in the Thai television series Insee Daeng (Red Eagle).
Buakaw Banchamek:
Buakaw Banchamek born May 8, 1982, is a professional Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer from Thailand of ethnic Kuy descent, who formerly fought out of Por. Pramuk Gym, in Bangkok, Thailand, under the ring name Buakaw Por. Pramuk He is a former two-time Omnoi Stadium champion, Lumpinee Stadium Toyota Marathon champion, former ranked fighter in Lumpinee Stadium, Thailand Featherweight champion, two-time K-1 World MAX champion and 2011 & 2012 Thai Fight tournament champion. Buakaw also briefly played professional football as a forward in the Regional League Division 2 for RBAC F.C. Additionally, he has also embarked on an acting career, starring in 2010’s Yamada:RELATED:
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The Samurai of Ayothaya and 2017’s Thong Dee Fun Khao after University graduate.
Buakaw is regarded as the best kickboxer that Thailand has ever produced. Buakaw has collected several belts to his name fighting in Bangkok. The Omnoi Stadium featherweight title was his first belt. After that, he would go on to take the featherweight champion of Thailand title. Buakaw then proceeded to win another Omnoi Stadium title belt, this time in the lightweight division. In December 2002, Buakaw won the Toyota Marathon 140 lb. tournament at Lumpinee Boxing Stadium, beating the highly regarded Satoshi Kobayashi of Japan in the finals.