Emperor of Muay Thai indeed
Sagat is the boss of the original Street Fighter game released in 1987, and one of the reasons for this is because the developers of the first game thought Muay Thai was the strongest martial art around.
The designer for the original Street Fighter game, Hiroshi Matsumoto, was asked why the final bout takes place in Thailand.
“It was our way of saying Muay Thai is the strongest,” Matsumoto said back in a 1987 interview, held at a JAMMA Show.
We’ve previously spoken about how Sagat will likely be one of the most powerful characters in Street Fighter 6 based on his gameplay trailer, but it’s worth pointing out that the developers of game have paid special attention to the franchise’s past when creating things now.
For example, Sagat destroying a tree in his teaser trailer is a callback to 1992 artwork, and several of Sagat’s poses and animations reflect media from prior years for Street Fighter.
If the developers once again take a cue from the past, Sagat could be set up as one of the best characters in the entire game. His power level is further evidenced by his very long reach, and higher than average startup on his normal moves, which likely means higher than normal damage.
Plus there’s the fact that he uppercuts a gigantic tree into oblivion during his teaser trailer.
Sagat is scheduled to release on August 5, 2025, which is right after Evo 2025. When he’s available to the general public, it’s going to be very interesting to see how strong the Emperor of Muay Thai is in Street Fighter 6.