Full Metal Dojo (FMD) is a Thai combat sports and entertainment promotion based in Thailand. The promotion is considered

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

's top mixed martial arts promotion. It is the first

mixed martial arts Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting combat sport, sport based on strike (attack), striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-s ...

promotion to host an event in

Phuket Phuket (; , , or ''Tongkah'') is one of the Southern Thailand, southern Provinces of Thailand, provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, List of islands of Thailand, the country's largest island, and another 3 ...

and is credited for pioneering MMA in Thailand. Full Metal Dojo runs the regular Fight Circus which has developed a cult following. Full Metal Dojo's Fight Circus is famous for breaking the mold of traditional combat sports and has been described by the Spanish newspaper MARCA as the "

mad scientist The mad scientist (also mad doctor or mad professor) is a stock character of a scientist who is perceived as "mad, bad and dangerous to know" or "insanity, insane" owing to a combination of unusual or unsettling personality traits and the unabas ...

s" of the fighting world. The show has been referred as '' wacky'', ''bizarre'', ''unconventional'', ''outrageous'' as well as hosting '' freakshow fights''. The types of matches at Fight Circus include inter-gender grappling matches, kicking-only bouts, 2 versus 1 fights,

dwarf Dwarf, dwarfs or dwarves may refer to: Common uses *Dwarf (folklore), a supernatural being from Germanic folklore * Dwarf, a human or animal with dwarfism Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities * Dwarf (''Dungeons & Dragons''), a sh ...

fighting,

Lethwei Lethwei (; International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ) or Burmese boxing is a Full contact fighting, full contact combat sport originating from Myanmar and is considered as one of the most brutal martial arts in the world.} * * * * * * Lethwe ...

fights, fighting inside

telephone booth A telephone booth, telephone kiosk, telephone call box, telephone box or public call box is a tiny structure furnished with a payphone and designed for a telephone user's convenience; typically the user steps into the booth and closes the boot ...

s, Indian leg wrestling with ''

Siamese twins Conjoined twins, popularly referred to as Siamese twins, are twins joined '' in utero''. It is a very rare phenomenon, estimated to occur in anywhere between one in 50,000 births to one in 200,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in south ...

boxing'' being a regular type of match at these events. Originally focused on mixed martial arts, Full Metal Dojo events have since focused on the Fight Circus franchise. The promotion held its first event on June 7, 2014, in Phuket, Thailand.

History

Full Metal Dojo

In 2014, American expatriate to Thailand,

Kunlun Fight Kunlun Fight (KLF) () is a kickboxing promotion headquartered in Beijing, China. It debuted in 2014 and is regarded as one of the top kickboxing promotions in the world. Events are broadcast on Jiangsu Television domestically and on various regio ...

commentator, promoter and

FOX Sports Asia Fox Sports Asia (formerly ESPN Star Sports) was a pan-Asian pay television network broadcasting in Asia, operated by Fox Networks Group Asia Pacific, a subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company (Southeast Asia) Pte. Ltd. It also oversaw a version o ...

host Jon Nutt launched the Full Metal Dojo promotion. Nutt was a former bouncer and

bounty hunter A bounty hunter is a private agent working for a bail bondsman who captures fugitives or criminals for a commission or bounty. The occupation, officially known as a bail enforcement agent or fugitive recovery agent, has traditionally operated ...

Boston Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. From 2011 to 2013, prior to launching FMD, Nutt operated an MMA promotion called ''DARE Fight Sports'' in Thailand. After becoming fed up with normal mixed martial arts events, Nutt launched Full Metal Dojo. On June 7, 2014, Full Metal Dojo's inaugural event took place at Seduction Night Club in Patong,

, Thailand. It marked the first mixed martial event to be held in Phuket with an attendance of around 500 in attendance. In 2017, FMD announced a new sponsorship deal consisting of two rival Thai real estate firms, Siam Real Estate and BKK BestLife Real Estate competing on Full Metal Dojo's Facebook page in a series of posts where online fans would vote on the most best property in various sector of

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estim ...

. On November 3, 2018, two of Thailand's top female atomweights

Suwanan Boonsorn Suwanan Boonsorn (born June 14, 1996) is a Thai mixed martial artist, currently fighting in the microweight division of Jewels, where she is the inaugural microweight champion. A professional competitor since 2014, Suwanan has also competed in ...

and future UFC fighter

Loma Lookboonmee Suphisara Konlak () (born January 18, 1996), known professionally as Loma Lookboonmee (), is a Thai martial artist who has competed in Muay Thai, boxing, kickboxing, and mixed martial arts. In boxing she has fought under the names Kanda Por Muang ...

for the vacant Full Metal Dojo Atomweight Championship at ''Full Metal Dojo 16: Big Trouble in Little Bangkok''. Suwanan Boonsorn won the fight by an armbar submission in the first-round to win the title. In the main event,

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

's Glenn Sparv won the inaugural Full Metal Dojo middleweight sword via second-round TKO over

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

ian wrestler Mehdi Bagheri. FMD doesn't give championship belts, instead the promotion awards ''Championship Swords'' such as

samurai The samurai () were members of the warrior class in Japan. They were originally provincial warriors who came from wealthy landowning families who could afford to train their men to be mounted archers. In the 8th century AD, the imperial court d ...

swords to its champions. In 2020, at the occasion of FDM 18, the Welterweight Champion received a hand forged Thai sword crafted by Ajarn Kor Neeow who was previously featured in Roads & Kingdoms and dubbed "The last traditional Dha sword maker in South East Asia". In 2018, FMD announced it would be starting an amateur league. On March 5, 2021, before the establishment of BKFC Thailand,

Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship The Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promotion based in Philadelphia. The promotion was founded in April 2018, and is presided over by David Feldman. BKFC is the first promotion to hold an official st ...

partnered with Full Metal Dojo to organize a

bare-knuckle boxing Bare-knuckle boxing (also known as bare-knuckle or bare-knuckle fighting) is a full-contact combat sport based on punching without any form of padding on the hands. The sport as it is known today originated in 17th-century England and, although ...

event titled '' Bare Knuckle Kingdom''. The event featured a number of fighters who would later compete on BKFC Thailand. The event was broadcast on the BKFC TV app.

Fight Circus

In August 2020, Full Metal Dojo launched the Fight Circus events by partnering with the live streaming pornographic site CamSoda. After organizing the acclaimed ''Camsoda Ledgends'' event in 2018, the streaming company teamed up with Full Metal Dojo and launch the ''Fight Circus'' events. On August 22, 2020, Camsoda and FMD launched Fight Circus Vol. 1 was a free show held in Bangkok and the Full Metal Dojo's first event since COVID-19 lockdowns in Thailand. The Fight Circus events could only be viewed on Camsoda's website. All proceeds were said to go to the COVID-19 relief fund. The event gathered of lot of attention among fight fans around the world. The vice-president of CamSoda Daryn Parker, extended an offer to

Tito Ortiz Jacob Christopher "Tito" Ortiz () is an American politican and retired mixed martial artist and Submission grappling, submission grappler. Ortiz is best known for his career with the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former UFC ...

for US$100,000 to fight in a 2-on-1 match at Fight Circus Vol. 3 in Thailand. The proposal was sent only a fews days after Ortiz resigned from the

Huntington Beach Huntington Beach is a seaside city in Orange County, California, United States. The city was originally called Pacific City, but it was changed in 1903 to be named after American businessman Henry E. Huntington. The population was 198,711 as o ...

City Council. Parker published the proposal in an public letter to Ortiz published online. The company also offered former professional basketball player

Nate Robinson Nathaniel Cornelius Robinson (born May 31, 1984) is an American former professional basketball player. Born in Seattle, Robinson played college basketball for the University of Washington in Seattle and was the 21st pick in the 2005 NBA draft. ...

to compete in Fight Circus and get US$200,000 for every fighter he faces in one night, after losing a second-round knockout loss to YouTuber

Jake Paul Jake Joseph Paul (born January 17, 1997) is an American Professional boxing, professional boxer, influencer and actor. He began his career posting videos on Vine (service), Vine in September 2013 and had amassed 5.3 million followers and 2 bi ...

. Fight Circus 3 was postponed from April 9 to November 5 due to COVID-19 outbreak. In 2022, the CEO Jon Nutt fought an "MMA Symmetrical match" against the Thai team fighters "Bank" and "No Money". One of the Thai fighters went for a takedown while the other was attacking. Nutt was able to toss one of his opponent on the floor and landed a soccer kick to the face, but eventually submitted via rear-naked choke. The event also featured Indian Leg Wrestling, inter-gender Muaythai, siamese twins kickboxing and the''"

Bob Sapp Robert Malcolm Sapp (born September 22, 1973) is an American mixed martial artist, kickboxing, kickboxer, professional wrestler, actor, and former American football, football player. He is currently under contract with Rizin Fighting Federatio ...

Challenge"'' where Sapp played with dwarfs and called out Buakaw Banchamek for a fight. One of the only non-

gimmick A gimmick is a novel device or idea designed primarily to attract attention or increase appeal, often with little intrinsic value. When applied to retail marketing, it is a unique or quirky feature designed to make a product or service "stand out ...

match of the event was a

fight between Gligor Stojanov and Kristof Kirsch, which ended in a spectacular knockout win for Stojanov. On June 30, 2023, WBC Heavyweight champion

Tyson Fury Tyson Luke Fury (born 12 August 1988) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 2008 to 2024. He held multiple world heavyweight championships, including unified titles from 2015 to 2016, the '' Ring'' magazine title twice bet ...

made a guest appearance at Fight Circus 7 at to celebrate the CEO Jon Nutt's birthday in Thailand. Fury sang American Pie in the ring. Fury was pictured partying in the ring with cosplaying dwarfs after throwing a birthday cake in Jon Nutt's face. On April 2, 2023, former

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

light heavyweight champion

Quinton Jackson Quinton Ramone Jackson (born June 20, 1978), known by his ring name of Rampage Jackson, is an American rapper, former mixed martial artist, actor, kickboxer, and professional wrestler. During the course of his mixed martial arts (MMA) career, ...

was teamed up with fellow

PRIDE Pride is a human Emotion, secondary emotion characterized by a sense of satisfaction with one's Identity (philosophy), identity, performance, or accomplishments. It is often considered the opposite of shame or of humility and, depending on conte ...

veteran

in a siamese boxing match for the main event of ''Fight Circus 6: The Rise Or Fall Of Sloppy Balboa'' held at Illuzion Nightclub in

. The "Siamese Twins" matchup was said to be an homage to Thailand's

Siamese Twins Conjoined twins, popularly referred to as Siamese twins, are twins joined '' in utero''. It is a very rare phenomenon, estimated to occur in anywhere between one in 50,000 births to one in 200,000 births, with a somewhat higher incidence in south ...

born in 1811. They faced the promotion's CEO Jon Nutt and Bangtao Muay Thai’s strength and conditioning coach Andrew Wood known as "Woody". The two pairs they were joined with a tailored oversized t-shirt. In the first round, Nutt was dropped by a heavy body shot and dragged his teammate down with him. Jackson also attacked the referee. The fight continued and Jackson and Sapp ultimately won by third-round TKO. The event was presented on

FITE Fite may refer to: People *Bobby Fite (born 1968), American film and television actor *Charlene Fite (born 1950), American politician *Gilbert Fite (1918–2010), American historian *Harvey Fite (1903–1976), American sculptor and painter *Lanny ...

. In 2024,

appeared on

The Joe Rogan Experience ''The Joe Rogan Experience'' is a podcast hosted by American comedian, presenter, and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan. It was initiated on December 24, 2009, on YouTube by Rogan and comedian Brian Redban, who was its sole co-host and produce ...

MMA Show #159 and described his match to

Joe Rogan Joseph James Rogan (born August 11, 1967) is an American podcaster, Ultimate Fighting Championship, UFC color commentator, comedian, actor, and former television host. He hosts The Joe Rogan Experience, ''The Joe Rogan Experience'', which is o ...

as the "''most fun he's ever had in a ring''". The event also saw former

World Lethwei Championship World Lethwei Championship (also known as WLC) was a Lethwei promotion based in Yangon, Myanmar. The promotion brought the millennia-old Burmese martial of Lethwei to UFC Fight Pass and showcased it to the world. The WLC events combined the hi ...

Champion Souris Manfredi fought two smaller fighters named Indica and Sativa also known as RUN THC. On September 29, 2024, for the main event of Fight Circus 8,

PRIDE Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

veteran Charles Bennet competed in 2-on-1 MMA match against Thai fighters "Bank" and "No Money" in

Phuket, Thailand Phuket (; , , or ''Tongkah'') is one of the southern provinces (''changwat'') of Thailand. It consists of the island of Phuket, the country's largest island, and another 32 smaller islands off its coast. Phuket lies off the west coast of m ...

. The Thai fighters won the match by submitting Bennet via

rear naked choke The rear naked choke (RNC), also known as hadaka jime (裸絞) in Judo and "lion killer choke (Mata Leão)" in BJJ, is a chokehold in martial arts applied from an opponent's back. The word ''naked'' in this context suggests that, unlike other stra ...

. In 2024, Former UFC fighter Matt Brown acted as a referee for "The Ultimate Dick Kicking Championships", a crotch kicking competition organized Fight Circus in Thailand. Some fans compared the event to

Dana White Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who is the CEO and president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at . Out ...

's Power Slap. Brown reposted the footage of the event to his X account and seemingly endorsed groin-kicking over slapfighting by adding the caption: ''"So much for power slap! "This shit is next level!"'' On January 12, 2025, Matt Brown acted as the partner of

Hall of Famer

Mark Coleman Mark Coleman (born December 20, 1964) is an American retired mixed martial artist, professional wrestler and Amateur wrestling, amateur wrestler. Coleman was the UFC 10 and UFC 11 tournament champion, the first List of UFC champions#Tournament ...

when he returned to the ring and competed at Fight Circus 12 in

in a "wheelchair boxing match" against the CEO of the promotion Jon Nutt. Coleman was being pushed around the ring, as both fighters were strapped into a wheelchair and were pushed by their cornermen. At the end of the fight, both men stood up from their wheelchairs and Coleman knocked out Nutt at the last second. Brown also competed at the event and fought "Blobtang" in a Muaythai match.

Fighting disciplines

Partial list of types of matches Full Metal Dojo and Fight Circus have held. * crotch-kicking * Siamese twins boxing * Inter-gender grappling * Kicking-only bouts * 2 versus 1 fights * Blindfolded

Muay Thai Muay Thai or Muaythai (, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, the Art of Eight Limbs or the Science of Eight Limbs, is a Thai martial art and full-contact combat sport that uses stand-up striking, sweeps, and various clinch fighting, cl ...

fighting *

Telephone booth A telephone booth, telephone kiosk, telephone call box, telephone box or public call box is a tiny structure furnished with a payphone and designed for a telephone user's convenience; typically the user steps into the booth and closes the boot ...

fighting * Indian leg wrestling *

MMA Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

Kickboxing Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid Martial arts, martial art and Boxing (disambiguation), boxing type based on punch (combat), punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, norma ...

Bareknuckle boxing Bare-knuckle boxing (also known as bare-knuckle or bare-knuckle fighting) is a full-contact combat sport based on punching without any form of padding on the hands. The sport as it is known today originated in 17th-century England and, although s ...

Submission grappling Submission wrestling, also known as submission grappling, submission fighting, or simply grappling, is a martial art and combat sport that focuses on ground fighting and submission techniques. It is a hybrid discipline that incorporates eleme ...

Events

Full Metal Dojo Fights, Fight Cards, Videos, Pictures, Events and more

Notable competitors

* Matt Brown *

Tharoth Sam Tharoth Sam is a Cambodian actress and mixed martial artist specializing in the Khmer fighting style of Bokator. She has previously competed in ONE Championship. Biography Sam grew up in a refugee camp on the border of Cambodia and Thailand. Her ...

Carlos Prates Carlos Augusto Monteiro Prates (born August 17, 1993) is a Brazilian professional mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai fighter. He currently competes in the welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of November 12, ...

Jomhod Kiatadisak Chamlom Thodthing (; born July 5, 1970), known professionally as Jomhod Kiatadisak (), is a Thai former professional Muay Thai fighter and kickboxer. Biography and career He started learning muay Thai at the age of 7 and won his first fight wh ...

* Charles Bennett *

Amir Aliakbari Amir Aliakbari (, born 11 December 1987) is an Iranian wrestler and mixed martial artist who he competes in the Heavyweight division. He has also competed for ONE Championship, Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB) and Rizin Fighting Federation. A ...

* Kritsada Kongsrichai

References

External links

*
FMD event results at Tapology

FMD event results at Sherdog
{{MMA organizations Mixed martial arts promotions Professional Muay Thai organizations Lethwei organizations Kickboxing organizations Sports leagues established in 2014 Organizations based in Thailand 2014 establishments in Thailand