| The Contender Asia | |
|---|---|
 Logo | |
| Also known as | The Contender: Kickboxer (UK) The Contender: Muay Thai (US) (AU) |
| Created by | Mark Burnett |
| Directed by | Jerry Schaffer Ozzie Smith |
| Presented by | Stephan Fox Jaymee Ong |
| Country of origin | Singapore |
| Original language | English |
| No. of episodes | 15 |
| Production | |
| Executive producers | Riaz Metha Joel Lin Mark Burnett Jeffrey Katzenberg |
| Original release | |
| Network | AXN Asia ITV4 (UK) Versus (United States) DStv (South Africa) FOX8 (Australia) |
| Release | January 16 – April 23, 2008 |
| Related | |
| The Contender | |
| Infobox instructions (only shown in preview) | |
The Contender Asia (known as The Contender: Kickboxer in the United Kingdom, and The Contender: Muay Thai in the United States) was a reality-based television series that follows 16 Muay Thai middleweight fighters from 12 countries as they compete in a series of outdoor challenges and sanctioned matches.[1] The series is a deviation from the original Contender series, which involved boxing. The winner received US$150,000 and bragging rights as "The Contender Champion".
The program was hosted by Vice President of World Muay Thai Council and former World Champion Stephen Fox (who also serves as the show's main trainer) and Jaymee Ong.[2][3]
The second season has been announced on its official website. Production will begin in late September 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, with 16 fighters (14 currently revealed) vying for the title and a bigger cash prize, which the producers say as "the highest prize money ever to be paid out in the sport of Muay Thai."[4]
- ^ "The Contender Asia kicks off". OnScreenAsia.com. September 9, 2007. Archived from the original on January 17, 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-16.
- ^ Donato, Jerry (January 16, 2008). "America's top sports show comes to Asia". The Philippine Star. pp. D-5.
- ^ "The Contender Asia Kicks Off Hot Fight Nights On AXN". AXN East Asia official website. January 10, 2008. Archived from the original on December 2, 2008. Retrieved 2008-01-19.
- ^ "The Contender Asia is coming to Malaysia". The Contender Asia official website. Archived from the original on September 2, 2009. Retrieved September 1, 2009.