For any Muay Thai fighter or practitioner, your Muay Thai shorts are a reflection of your style and personality. If you train Muay Thai then you should own several pairs of shorts, and now that's easier than ever to find the perfect pair for you.
With the wealth of Muay Thai brands coming into the market, different styles, shapes, brands; it's so easy to find your style and perfect pair.
Muay Thai shorts are some of the most unique sportswear/clothing items, with some celebrities and rappers wearing them as a fashion item rather than for training.
We've compiled our list of our favourite Muay Thai shorts over the years, from iconic classics from the golden age, shorts from some of the greatest fights and our favourites that just have that Muay Thai flair.
Here are our picks for the most iconic Muay Thai shorts of all time:
ThaiSmai - Muay Thai Shorts - Samart Payakaroon vs Dieselnoi - 1982
ThaiSmai have been producing some of the best looking Muay Thai shorts since 1960. Worn in some of the most iconic Muay Thai fights the world has ever seen.
We haven't ordered this list in any way, due to how many various different ranking factors such as style points and why they won our hearts. With that being said, these shorts would definitely be near the top if we were.
Anyway, back to the shorts. These red ThaiSmai BS 1003 Muay Thai shorts have made it onto the list for a number of different reasons. ThaiSmai are the originators for some of the most iconic Muay Thai shorts designs that have now gone on to inspire many new designs.
These red shorts have been worn by some of the greatest of all time, Samart Payakaroon and Dieselnoi. I came across these shorts a lot when looking at the old Thai Magazines of Muay Thai and they just caught our attention. Not for how they look but for the stories behind them.
Reading Sylvies Patreon update for Dieselnoi vs Samart Fight (1982) - the Holy Grail GOAT vs GOAT, really brings back the history of Muay Thai. Even just watching back the footage gives us chills, would've loved to have been in Rajadamnern stadium on that day.
All credit for the image goes to Sylvie for all the hard work she does in keeping the history, stories and old media from Muay Thai alive.
Gaiyanghadao Chicken Muay Thai shorts
Style points play massively into this list, these are the quirky favourites. Ladened with Thai sponsors, with the old, more traditional styling, these red Muay Thai shorts worn by Sam -A Gaiyanghadao are definitely a bit of a masterpiece.
They show off the more flamboyant side of Muay Thai, very in your face styling and a bit chaotic, but we really do love them.
GYM NASTY Muay Thai Shorts - NAK SUU Flame
Now whilst they're nowhere near the fame or stature of the majority of the shorts on this list, we had to give ourselves a mention.
When I went on my weight loss journey through Muay Thai, I always had the vision of creating something to inspire other people to follow their dreams. These were the first designs that I made for some shorts. They had a couple of revisions and took a while to get right, but it was definitely worth it.
As our first release, we launched them with our Nak Suu Muay Thai range. The shorts are a symbol of fighting through the fire and getting through to the otherside, no matter how big the fight.
The inspiration came from the old Muay Thai shorts. A little big longer, similar to traditional western boxing but with hints of the new age Muay Thai design that we see today. The satin material makes the reds and black pop when lighting hits them, with the flames of the Muay Thai shorts adding that little flare to your kicks.
These were the first designs, a little basic and more towards MMA shorts. We tested a few different fits, styles and variations of the design but weren't really happy with the quality, fit or feel. 
When I first started designing them, I drew the whole mockup by hand and then transferring and colouring digitally. Anyway, I'm getting too in the weeds here. These shorts me a lot to me and us at GYM NASTY.
We wanted to show the history of them, how they came to life and are now worn by our supporters worldwide.
ThaiSmai - Muay Thai Shorts - Old West
We told you ThaiSmai have produced some of the greatest, iconic designs... We weren't lying. Another mention for the legendary brand for a number of different reasons.
Again, these Old West ThaiSmai Muay Thai shorts have been worn by some of the greatest fighters of all time.
A different colour-way of these shorts were worn by John Wayne Parr in some of his fights. Again, these are some of the most iconic Muay Thai shorts that we absolutely love for the story behind them.
Reading Kevin's update on Sylvies patreon gives us a deeper understanding behind one of the most iconic Muay Thai magazine covers of all time.
On Samart's 3rd fight of the year after coming off an apparent "bad loss", this would be a significant return to Muay Thai. Namphon - pictured on the cover with Samart - is seen bloodied up after their fight. The story behind the famous blood face photo was a result of Namphon getting cut in training, just a week before the fight. Kevin goes on to say that this picture in some ways defined Namphon from there on out, giving him the nickname of "Soft Faced or rotten faced fighter", as Kevin points out, you've got to take into consideration Samart's fight nickname... the Jade Faced Tiger.
This photo and magazine cover is one of the most iconic to grace the sport of Muay Thai, which is why these shorts made it to our list.
Venum Rajadamnern Muay Thai Shorts
We've had some classics on this list, now it's time for the new age coming through. Rajadamnern is the one of the two main stadiums in modern Muay Thai. It has such a rich history and spectators have seen some of the most memorable and iconic fights here.
To this day, Rajadamnern Stadium is showcasing some of the best Muay Thai fighters around the world, bringing big interest from international sponsors.
Enter Venum... These shorts have made it onto our list due to Rajadamerns Friday fights. In 2024, we're seeing traditional Muay Thai being fought, broadcasted around the world, with these shorts being a common theme throughout many of the greatest clips on social media.
We love the two contrasting colours, the blue and sand variants really stand out. These shorts nicely combine the different styles of Muay Thai shorts throughout the years.
Rounding things up
There are some incredible Muay Thai shorts out there and more to come in the future as the sport grows. Going back through old footage it can be quite hard to find certain details on older shorts, or even to find clear images can be a struggle.
What is a given though is when you look back through the years, you can see how the styles have changed slightly but have always got that certain Muay Thai charm.
Greatest design Muay Thai shorts
Since it takes a while to source certain information and some of the newer shorts don't have the same deeper stories as some of the others on the list. We've got some honourable mentions to add to the list before you go.
Yokkao Carbon Fit Muay Thai Shorts – High Scream
These always catch my eye. I haven't had a chance to get my hands on a pair but the colours and the overall design just jumps out.
Super Muay Thai Bros - Green Muay Thai Shorts - Muay Thai Addict
Love Mario? Train Muay Thai? These might just be the perfect shorts for you!
M-150 Muay Thai Shorts
I can't pinpoint specifically what fights I've seen these in but definitely some old footage. These are absolute classics, the satin material on the shorts makes the blue shimmer in the light and they're just a really classic design.
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