Match game: cataloguing Thai pro boxers real and "fighting" names.

Wanheng Menayothin - Chayaphon Moonsri

 

Kaoklai Kaennorsing - Born Athit DamKam

Mostly name dropping him as a kickboxing/MT fan as his boxing career was mostly just a footnote and not a very successful one(1-6 record) Although he did lose to some solid names as opposed to feasting on tomato cans.

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David vs Goliath every fight. Legendary for giving away tons of weight, height and reach and showing tremendous durability and heart often getting the win. The Changpuek of his era.

Never get tired of watching Mighty Mo eating that flying shin!

 

Have to wonder how much that path took out of him. He was almost completely spent before he was 30.

 

Agree totally.

 

Lol at those obvious fake names "Peter Picinic, Willy Wippet"
http://boxrec.com/en/boxer/580995

 

Sure but talking Thais 30 is serious longevity already. Most quality guys are done by their mid 20s, due to depth of competion in the ranks coming up & amount of bouts already fought at the important weights. Hence once discarded a few get released or pushed into other directions like Boxing or K1 as a final money grab once their domestic MT careers are done. You have to remember domestic level is higher & way more competitive than world level.

 

Yeah that's true but his unique path certainly didn't help things lol. I think he'd probably have hung around in K-1 and even Glory for a bit longer had it not been for his freakshow celebrity in Japan and willingness to take fights against much bigger foes. Schilling for example would have been an easy fight for him if he even had 50% left.

 

You should've seen the discussion that made that happen in BoxRec's editor part of their forum. It was so interesting but mostly focused on the faking of fights by Thai handlers.

 

I’ve never really thought about it from that angle, I’ve only ever thought about it from the Thai point of view, but I agree with you totally. Great post.

 

This really is a good post especially the last paragraph.

It’s not speculation, abuse is part of the system. By “western standards” just the way the kids are trained wouldn’t be allowed, let alone the living conditions and expectations the system and life style brings. Fighters are massively exploited from kid fighter to world champion and conditioned to be very subservient and powerless in decision making no matter how small or large. But this is also true of rural people in wider Thai society where there is a massive class system.

Thailand has about 5000 pro gyms, they are unregulated and unchecked. With most of them rural and very small. Who can tell how wide spread abuse really is, but for sure it’s happening. In terms of individual kinds of abuse other than the system as a whole, from experience I’d say it’s less likely to be mental or sexual abuse although I’m sure it happens, but I’d say physical abuse would be the bigger one. Not in a vindictive, belligerent or nasty kind of way more a “tough” love kind of way which borders on and in many cases tips over into serious abuse. I’ve seen that a few times, where ex fighters from a tougher era who are now trainers take things way to far.

I recall a father and son. The father had been just a mid level fighter in his day but had high expectations for his son. His son was a good and semi talented fighter with good technique who enjoyed his training and fighting, but mostly when his father wasn’t around. His father was a part time trainer and drunk with a big mouth. I remember one time the kid was tired as he’d trained with us in the morning session and almost completed the afternoon session. As the afternoon session was winding down his dad would often do additional pad work. Being tired his technique and effort wasn’t quite there... so his father would get more and more irritated and start screaming at him and hitting him with the pads in between combos. The tempo and shouting would increase and the hitting getting harder and harder, the gym dropping to silence, the boy crying but still following his fathers training until the father literal battered him to the canvas infront of everyone until other trainers came in and calmed the father down. The kid was physically and mentally humiliated and abused. The father did this on more than one occasion. I wanted to react, but Thais around me encouraged me not to intervene, I was young so hence towed the line. In our gym a lot of the kids didn’t go to school either.

Let me stress, things have improved dramatically over the last 20 years I’ve been here, mainly due to the massive rise in foreigners coming to train and an increased scrutiny due to the rise of social media otherwise I doubt much really would have.

 

- Chainoi Worawut real name : Thachtana Luangphon

- Paipharob Kokietgym real name : Phai Pharob

- Pigmy Kokietgym real name : Wicha Phulaikhao


- Wisanu Por Nobnum Kokietgym real name : Phissanu Chimsunthom



- Phetsongsaeng Rongriangeela Kora real name : Songsaeng Phoyaem


- Kennakorn GPP Ruakaimook real name : Aran Dipaen


- Kongfah CP Freshmart real name : Jakrawut Majungoen


- Mike Tawatchai Ruawaiking real name : Pipat Chaiporn



- Red Wolf real name : Sitthisak Simsri


- Black Wolf or KO Artist real name : Thanongsak Simsri


- Thananchai NKL real name : Thananchai Charunphak


- Petchbarngborn Kokietgym real name : Karoon Jarupianlerd