If you’re already good at Muay Thai fighting but want to get better, what do you do and where do you go?
Nick Gjelaj, a New York native and an Albuquerque resident, made an impressive pro debut on a Coalition Muay Thai card at Expo New Mexico on Jan. 25, 2025 with a victory by unanimous decision over Texan Bob Mozisek.
He wanted more. Much more. So, he packed his bags and boarded a plane headed for Thailand, the birthplace and the hub of Muay Thai.
Some 10 months and nine Muay Thai fights later, he returned to Albuquerque with an 8-2 record (including the Mozisek fight), invaluable experience and a heightened reputation in what is now his chosen sport.
The payoff — so far: a fight against Hawaii’s Noa Moniz on a Coalition card Aug. 22 in Houston for the WBC Muay Thai U.S. featherweight title.
Of those 10 months in Thailand, Gjelaj, interviewed at Albuquerque’s Kingdom Muay Thai, said he could have had more fights there if he’d wanted them.
“It’s awesome,” he said. “You can fight, like, every week there.
“… That’s Thailand. You just train, and then they walk up to you (and ask) if you want to fight tomorrow.”
If anyone was wondering, the WBC referenced above is in fact the World Boxing Council. The WBC has dipped its toe, at least, into helping to popularize Muay Thai — a combat sport that allows blows with fists, elbows, knees and feet.
Clinches are not only permitted but are encouraged; the Muay Thai clinch, in fact is widely used in MMA fights. A Muay Thai referee will separate fighters in a clinch only when it’s clear nothing is being accomplished, a foul occurs, etc.
Gjelaj didn’t move to Albuquerque from New York some seven years ago, at age 18, solely with Muay Thai in mind. He has 11 listed MMA fights, eight as an amateur and three as a pro. He still entertains the possibility of returning to the cage should the opportunity arise.
For the time, being, though, it’s all Muay Thai. He’s the head coach at Kingdom Muay Thai and makes his living fighting and teaching the sport.
“Instructing is one of my passions,” he said. “I do it continuously for hours a day, and I love it.
“It feels like I don’t work a day in my life.”
At the same time, he’s putting in the work he’ll need for the upcoming title fight.
Moniz, like Gjelaj, has made the pilgrimage to Thailand — in fact, it appears he’s done a lot of his training there in preparation for Houston.
Unlike Gjelaj, Moniz has no listed MMA record and appears to be fully dedicated to Muay Thai. He is the ranked No. 1 contender for the WBC title, Gjelaj No. 3.
Muay Thai record-keeping is an inexact science, but Moniz is listed as having won his first five fights. Beyond that, it’s unclear.
In a YouTube video, Moniz said he’d had nine fights in Thailand but didn’t talk about wins and losses.
In any case, Gjelaj said, “He’s a very skilled opponent. He’s very respectful (as Muay Thai fighters tend to be in a sport deeply rooted in Buddhist culture and Thai tradition). … I look forward to fighting him.”
Gjelaj said Moniz has a considerable following on his home island of Oahu, where Muay Thai is better known and more popular than most other areas of the United States.
“He’s kind of like the face of Hawaii right now,” Gjelaj said. “He has, like, the whole place backing him up.”
Gjelaj would like to help Muay Thai keep growing on the mainland.
Since its debut card in January 2025, Albuquerque-based Coalition Muay Thai has staged four cards in Texas. The card in Houston will be No.6 for the company.
“What Coalition is doing right now is absolutely blowing up Muay Thai in the United States,” Gjelaj said.
“And it’s changing the game.”