TAMPA MUAY THAI INC.
TAMPA, FLORIDA

Company Centuries ago, Muay Thai was very different than you see it today. Thailand (known as Siam at that time) was under constant threat and struggle which called for a strong method of defense. This combative system that was developed was known as Krabi-Krabong , which is essentially swordplay taught to the military to fend off marauders and offending nations. This method of fighting was also practiced empty hand, assuming all possibilities of warfare. The empty hand practice of this art soon turned into an obsession of the soldiers, which then turned into a sport desired by royalty and spectators all over the country. It was known as Muay Kaad Cheuk (binding hand boxing), where contestants would wrap their hands in finely woven hemp rope which would prevent them from injuries of the hand and provide reinforcement for a more solid hand strike. This was the dawn of Muay Thai. Khanomtom Muay Thai has strived to re-establish the ancient ways in a dynamic approach by finding the common denominator with modern ‘ring-style’ Thai boxing, making these historical techniques effective within modified application. Tampa Muay Thai has a class for you. Ray provides his students with detailed, technical instruction of Authentic Muay Thai. Ray continues to hold KMT camp trips to Thailand each year in order to improve the skills of KMT and share these skills and experiences with the world! The story of Khru Ray is a tale of ambition and inspiration. Long before wearing the title of Khru, Raymond Cole was a normal teenager doing the same things people his age did, like watch TV. Well one day while watching television he saw a Muay Thai scene and something inside him caught fire and hasn’t stopped burning since. A short time later he acquainted himself with Muay Thai and began learning the art at the age of 15. His first amateur fight would soon follow in 1999, and four fights later he would leave the amateur circuit to try his career at the pro level. During this period he even found the time to go through a brief Eskrima phase and learned some Filipino Stickfighting. But his true passion had always been reserved for Muay Thai, which became apparent back in 2005. That year, with a professional record of 9 and 6, Ray could no longer resist the voice of his heart and answered the call to become a Khru, and for seven years now has been teaching the sport in his hometown of Tampa Florida. But what distinguishes this Khru among other trainers is that he gives lessons in a gym which he is Founder and President of. Khru Ray Cole gave birth to Khanomtom Muay Thai, a stronghold devoted to the preservation of authentic Muay Thai in America. Established in the Khru’s birthplace of Tampa, the gym today serves as a crucial part of the Muay Thai network here in the States. It has become a guiding lighthouse for authentic Muay Thai seekers in the Florida area. It is the gym that number nine ranked Alex Berrios proudly represents, and is also associated with many respected fighters and trainers in the game. Khanomtom Muay Thai is home to a purist philosophy in its approach to training and tradition. Its style of teaching is calibrated to be in-tuned with the same techniques and traditions taught by the Muay Thai camps over in Thailand. Khru Ray credits its success to the precise execution of his purist philosophy, of his insistence to strictly adhere to the cultural details he was accustomed to during the training trips he had taken to Thailand. What adds marvel to this story is knowing that the successful business feat would never have transpired if it weren’t for the vital contribution and commitment of one man. It takes a true visionary to manifest a dream, to realize all the risks, and more importantly, all the lasting rewards that setting up Khanomtom Muay Thai would return. In an interview with the 29 year old entrepreneur, Khru Ray reveals the path he has followed that has brought him to where he is now: In 2005 I decided to travel to Thailand for one month to train Muay Thai from the source. This way I can understand the art more than what I’ve been taught up to that point by my previous instructors. I’ve always had an intense respect and admiration for the art and sport of Muay Thai ever since I first saw it on TV when I was 15. I knew that in order to truly learn it I would have to step out of the box, outside of my comfort zone and travel half-way across the world to Thailand. I went and trained for one month. When I returned to the states I had a new-found respect for Muay Thai, the art and culture, after being immersed in it. That’s when I really started taking it seriously. Not only did I decide that this is what I want to do for a living, teaching and promoting Authentic Muay Thai to the American public, but more, I really wanted to make an effort to show my appreciation to the origin of the art by doing everything possible to stay true to the culture and authenticity of Muay Thai. That’s why my trainers are held in very high regard and all my students are taught to do the very same and I accredit all of our success to this. I was teaching Muay Thai a few years before my first trip to the motherland but it was very informal. Actually, it was out of a 3-bay storage shed unit in the ghetto. I didn’t promote classes really. By word of mouth around Tampa, people found me and I would just say jump in and train with us and help me cover rent. In fact, this is how Alex Berrios found me. He had just moved down to Tampa permanently from Iowa in 2005. He had a couple Muay Thai fights by then. He got my number from a friend who owns a TKD school. He recommended Alex come see me if he wanted to do Muay Thai. The rest is history. We’ve been brothers ever since. His dedication in training to fight is what motivated me to teach Muay Thai more prominently. I felt more of a responsibility as a trainer now that he wanted to compete regularly. Once I became more formal and organized with our training, many more students followed and were compelled to train hard and compete so this was the driving force behind my teaching. And again, when I returned from Thailand, I felt obligated to employ more elements of Thai culture and adapt our training to emulate that of the camps in Thailand. After that, the improvement in everybody’s skills and work ethic was incredible.