Meet the instructors at Rami Elite

Born in Kuwait on May 14, 1982, but originally from Palestine, Rami Ibrahim became the youngest out of six boys.

During the summer of 1990 Rami and his family came to the United States (Philadelphia) for vacation only to end up staying there for good due to the start of the Gulf War. Losing everything, his family had to regroup and start a new life in the states. Immediatly after the Gulf War Rami’s 4th older brother Mohammad put him into a martial arts school (Golden Fist; training under Dosanim Gregory Purefoy) as a way to keep him busy.

After Rami’s first Karate tournament (in 1994), Master Gregory Purefoy told him, “Maybe you should think about full contact Kickboxing?” Soon after his first fight Rami knew that the ring was going to be his new home, and he was going to do this for the rest of his life with intentions of becoming the first Palestinian World Champion some day.

In 1995, Rami started fighting outside his resident state of Pennsylvania, with the first one being in New York City. Rami was 13 at the time, and that night he fought a 31 year old Japanese fighter, which Rami won. After the fight Rami runs into a man, Ajarn Aziz Nabih, who tells him you’re a tough kid. Little did he know, was that Aziz was going to be his future trainer.

During his high school years of 1996-2000, those were the years were Rami paved the path to the career of his future. While in high school, Rami enrolled in the high school wrestling team for Olney High School. In his sophomore year, he transferred to Northeast High School and continued wrestling there. His following year as a junior, he also started training in boxing. By now he was doing 4 sports a day; Karate, Muay Thai, Boxing and Wrestling. His final year as a senior at Northeast High School, Rami competed in his final wrestling tournament and became a Philadelphia All-Public Wrestling Champion and was also awarded that same year, “Most Improved Wrestler of the Year award (2000).

At the age of 17, in 2000, Rami, still fighting under Golden Fist, fought Hicham from Sitan Gym (NY branch) for the WKA United States Muay Thai title and Rami won by 3rd TKO. After the fight Ajarn Aziz Nabih (owner of Sitan Gym NY branch) and Hicham met with Rami and suggested, and convinced, Rami that he start training with them, and that they can take him to the next level. By then, Rami had over 130 (C and B class) Muay Thai kickboxing fights.

From that time till present, Rami trained in freestyle Karate, Tae Kwon Do, Kickboxing, Muay Thai, Wrestling, and Boxing. He won over 200 Karate championships in events such as Forms, Weapons, and Sparring. By 2003 he became the first and only Palestinian American to win these titles; Philadelphia Kickboxing Championship, World Kickboxing Association (WKA) United States Muay Thai Championship, United States Kickboxing Association (USKBA) International Muay Thai Championship, Philadelphia All-Public Wrestling Championship, Philadelphia Golden Glove Boxing Championship and Philadelphia Diamond Belt Boxing Championship.

In 2010, Rami also started trainig Jui Jitsu and Maxercise and Team Balance and began his professional career in Mixed Martial Arts. During that same year, he became the first Palestinian American to win the WKA North American Muay Thai Championship, and the following year, in 2011, he fought on the first full Muay Thai rules event held in the East Coast in New Jersey, won his fight, and became the first Palestinian American to become the WBC #1 ranked fighter in the nation.

By 2007 Ajarn Aziz Nabih, suggests, and convinces, Rami to open his own Sitan Gym branch. n May 2014 Rami branched out rebranded his Gym to Rami Elite. Having achieved his goal and dream, Rami Ibrahim is now a school teacher, gym owner of world wide known and respected Muay Thai camp, Rami Elite (Philadelphia’s branch), now producing Muay Thai champions of his own in the city of brotherly love, all while being a world class professional prize fighting champion himself.