Muay Thai in Chiang Mai

A trip to Thailand was never going to be complete without seeing a proper Muay Thai fight night. We'd originally planned to catch a fight in Bangkok (the capital of the sport) a few days earlier, but things didn't go quite according to plan.

We were only in town for a couple of days and the stadium wasn't open the night we were there, so we caught a fight in Chiang Mai instead, at the Chiang Mai Boxing Stadium.

Muay Thai is Thailand’s national sport (like football is to us in the UK) and they know how to put on a good show.

The whole night cost about £20 each for ring-side seats, while over six rounds, 12 fighters of increasing age and experience kicked seven bells out of each other in the ring.

There are plenty of other fight venues in Chiang Mai city, but the main boxing stadium was recommended to us by our gracious host at the beautiful Hongkhao Village hotel.

Whether you're into fighting or not, this is an amazing experience and one you shouldn't miss if you're travelling through Thailand.

These photographs were taken with my Canon EOS 5D Mark IV and the extraordinary Canon 35 mm f/1.4 L II USM .