#153 Noppadet Sor. Rewadee | Muay Dtae, precision femeur kicker (1 hr, 9 min)

You can see Noppadet in our "Jam Session" with Dieselnoi from a few years ago where he acted mostly as an aid to Dieselnoi, but we're absolutely delighted to get Kru Nop's own session and his own beautiful style into the Library. One of the great Power Femeu fighters, with wins over the likes of Wangchannoi, Langsuan, Detduang, Dokmaibaa, Chamuakpet, Weerapol, and one of only 5 fighters to beat Somrak during his Muay Thai career in Bangkok. In Muay Thai history he has a primier resume of opponent wins, yet he has remained little known in the English speaking world.

As a sidenote, as a result of this session Lev put assembled a Wikipedia page for Noppadet, researching his career and record on his own, a huge contribition to his memory. You can see that here: Noppadet Sor.Rewadee on wikipedia. Quietly Lev and others have been assembling and correcting the public record of great Thai fighters of the past, building out that history that will speak to future generations. It's wonderful that now Noppadet (and this Muay Thai Library session) is a part of it. He is an incredible fighter.

Noppadet was 126 lb Rajadamnern champion and he had the chaiya "Aswin Muang surin," meaning the Knight of Singburi. He is an underrecognized and underappreciated fighter from the 80s and early 90s, full of high-degree IQ, great eyes, fast reflexes, and a whip-like left kick from Southpaw.

If you want to taste of just how good he could be, watch his 1993 Rajadamnern title fight, where he expresses his full timing style. In this session he presents the basics of his muay:

watch it here

What to Look Out For:

1) Staying Long: I personally struggled with this because it is my nature to be a dern, or forward, fighter. But I'm so glad Noppadet took the time to enforce his own style on my understanding. He likes to pull back slowly, gradually, forcing his opponent to step into range so that Noppadet can fire his open-side (on an orthodox opponent) left kick as the opponent is transferring their weight forward. It's so fast, and he insists on staying long, not closing in at the end of the kick.

2) Pressure versus Tension: I love, love, so much the broad spectrum of Muay Thai styles. It's not just Muay Khao - Femeu that make up the colors of that spectrum, but the eating of space (pressure) versus slow pull (tension) of controlling space. Noppadet emphasizes a slow drag back in this session, making sure to note that you don't hurry backwards, because that breaks the tension and you're just out of range for any strikes, which he says makes you tired. Instead, you focus on inches and incremental movements, drawing the opponent into your striking range and hitting them when they're not ready to block (as the weight is transferring forward).

3) Weight Transfer and "Reading": it was Karuhat who first introduced the idea of, and taught me how, to read an opponent's weight transfer. You strike on first movement, but it's a very narrow window to get the timing right. So, Noppadet uses his slow, tension drawing backwards and strikes as the opponent puts weight onto the front foot to follow. Meanwhile, he hides his own movements by keeping his stance somewhat narrow (or maybe just not wide) and shifting his weight continually, but naturally, as one might if they were walking.

4) Body Locks: body locks were a huge part of Golden Age Muay Thai, but they've mostly disappeared from contemporary stadium Muay Thai. They just don't score anymore. But even without the score, they are a very dominant move and Noppadet advises them to me, as a smaller fighter, as a way to not waste energy fighting for a dominant position. So, lock up by the neck becasue that's dominant and stay there if it's working, but the moment the (bigger) opponent takes an advantageous position, quickly switch to a body locka nd spin to the side or back.

5) "Melting" Off of Guards: when an opponent has good defense, they'll create shin bars, or high guards, or hand blocks that make it hard for you to strike. Noppadet demonstrates how to "melt" off of that, releasing the tension rather than necessary losing space, and firing shots to counter that defense.

Other Sessions Referenced in my voiceover, if you want to dive in deep:

#48 Dieselnoi Chor. Thanasukarn - Jam Session (80 min) watch it

#143 Takrowlek Dejrat - Master of the Low Kick (90 min) watch it here 

#27 Karuhat Sor. Supawan 4 - Tension & Kicking Dynamics (104 min) watch it here

#47 Silapathai Jockygym - Master of Teep Distance (64 min) watch it here

#34 Samart Payakaroon - Balance, Balance, Balance! (81 min) watch it here

#139 Chamuakpet Hapalang 3 - Vertical Attack, Control of Space (95 min) watch it here or podcast here 

Noppadet, bottom left, in 1991

 Noppadet (left) and Wangchannoi (right) backstage

 At Lumpinee

 Featherweight Champion at Rajadamnern, 1993, with the two owners of Sor. Rewadee Gym

Kevin's Photographs from the session:

If you enjoyed this session, these are other Muay Dtae oriented sessions in the MTL:

#47 Silapathai Jockygym - Master of Teep Distance (64 min) watch it here

One of the great femeu fighters of the Golden Age unlocks the secret of his teep oriented dominance which made him one of the most difficult fighters to face in his day. The lessons here are precious as he unfolds the details of how to use the teep and tempo to always put the fight where you want it.

#111 The Karuhat Rosetta Stone 7 - The Secrets of the Matador (83 min) watch it here

Karuhat is the most documented Golden Age legend in history, thanks to the sum of all the filming and commentary we've been able to do with him. This session though provide the key to understanding all the other sessions. And there is a very special focus on his particular Golden Kick.

#57 Boonlai Sor. Thanikul - Kicking Excellence (66 min) watch it here

One of the most asked for sessions by patrons, and it took well over a year to find and arrange filming with Boonlai. A legendary fighter of the Golden Age who beat some of the greatest fighters of his day (Karuhat, Namkabuan, Langsuan, etc), with such a beautiful kicking attack. Learn the secrets of his head kick, along with some beautiful slow-motion capture.

#40 Gen Hongthonglek - Muay Femeu Tactics & Mindset (70 min) watch it here

The Muay Femeu (artful fighting) style is more than just a set of techniques, it's also a mindset and strategy of how to score, and how to score big. The warfare is not just in terms of damage, but of psychology, displaying dominance through skill and timing. Gen in this hour outlines how he likes to fight, and how he pulls off the biggest scores at the right time.