“COACH….HEY COACH…. YOU’RE THE MAN COACH!!!!!!!”

By: Tomas Moreno for Valley Tudo

When mma first started it was all about the fighters and the shows they put on. But now with the expansion and the growth of the sport the general public are now interested in training camps, mma nutrition, sponsors and most importantly the key factor that every sport has COACHES. Just like any other place in the world the RGV has its super Coaches. A coach that is well diverse in his knowledge in different forms of martial arts, a desire to teach, and most importantly the LOVE to see his students to succeed. Coach Julio Gamboa of the Thai Champs was able to sit down and talk to Valley Tudo about his past, present, and future. Thai Champs based out of Weslaco is one of the RGV’s elite mma training schools, and with premium school status its only right that the coach is also superb.

PAST:

Like many others Gamboa started with karate as a child quickly moving up in ranks. With the Royce Gracie and the UFC emerging on the scene it was then when Gamboa decided he needed to be an all around fighter. So he began training in the world famous ground fighting art JIU JITSU. He sought out the best jiu jitsu practitioner in the world, which was Rickson Gracie, and so he traveled to become a student of the great Rickson Gracie. Gamboa was later introduced to Carlos Machado and it was Machado’s style of jiu jitsu that really captured his interested. He brought Brazilian jiu jitsu to Mexico under the Carlos Machado lineage. As his skills grew it was the stand up game that Gamboa always truly loved. As he was always keeping an open mind to learn different martial arts it was Muay Thai that would soon be the art he felt was the perfect upgrade and more importantly it was the refinement to his already established stand up. It was the art of 8 limbs that Gamboa practiced and trained in that captured his heart. As Gamboa began his infatuation with Muay Thai it brought him to Thailand where he stayed for three years studying under great instructors. While training under some of the best Muay Thai instructors and fighting with some of the best fighters in the THAI world it was only right that Gamboa would bring his knowledge he acquired to the states.

PRESENT:

Gamboa believes every martial art can help and teach a person to become better not only physically but mentally. Each martial art should be respect for each aspect it brings to the table. Gamboa states that you should have to pay to educate yourself whether it is in academics, or martial arts. If you want everything free you would become anything in life because it’s a complement, a balance, yin yang. Everything in the world requires Heart, Intention, Passion, Love, Loyalty, and Money because without these you value life to the fullest. Its with these moral s and values that Gamboa was able to establish his schools and while he spends the majority of his time in his weslcao school he still finds time to share with his ten schools in mexico. You see Gamboa has an open door policy that allows anyone to come in and learn about Muay Thai. Only thing he asks is for heart, desire, and most importantly honestly.

FUTURE:

With his headquarters in Weslaco and many schools in Mexico he would like to later expand and franchise the THAI CHAMPS gym all around the USA and Brazil. His ambitions are those similar to the inventor of Coke-Cola, you might not know the owner of coke-cola but you know the product is top of the line. He doesn’t care for accolades his heart is in the expansion of Muay Thai. So what does the future hold in store for Mr. Julio Gamboa and the THAI CHAMPS well he doesn’t know and he’s not going to wait around hoping things happen; Gamboa is out there MAKING THINGS HAPPEN.

Peace, Respect, & Jiu Jitsu

Tomas Moreno