07/17/2015
Meet Peter Dang and Derek Wong, two guys who love Muay Thai. I had the great opportunity of photographing one of their training sessions back in December and I think its about time to share these photos with the world. Outside of their full-time jobs, Peter and Derek spend approximately ten hours a week practicing and coaching at the The Bushido Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Manchester Ct. The dedication and passion these two have for Muay Thai is truly admirable.
"I love Muay Thai because, in my opinion, it's the purest form of striking and perhaps martial arts in general. There are no limitations to what you can do; knees, elbows, punches, kicks, they seem simple enough but there are so many technicalities to each strike that it takes years to really master. Nothing easy is fun and that's why I love Muay Thai, not only is it physically draining but mentally as well. Anybody can just learn to kick and punch your opponent, but you have to mentally prepare to take physical damage as well. People mistaken Muay Thai as just punching and kicking your opponent but they don't realize it's more like a game of chess. You have to read your opponent and react to things before they happen or set up kicks with punches and vice versa. For instance, you might want to jab your opponent a few times to keep his hands high, which would set up a solid mid kick that he wouldn't see coming. At the end of the day, everybody trains for a different reason but for me, it's for the love of the sport." - Pete Dang