ESB ATGs Muay Thai / KickBoxing fighters Thread

Hello Fellas.

Very surprised not to see any Sor Thanikul fighters on any of those lists:

Khomkiet Sor Thanikul x2
Phyapnoi Sor Thanikul
Sombat Sor Thanikul

To name but a few of a very long list of greats in their time.
(I've not got ant footage, I'm not too technichal).

Sor Thanikul was run by Thailand's biggest Mafia Don in the 80s and 90s Mr Khao Thanikul. He bought up alot of the biggest talent in that period and housed the Olympic amatuer training set up at the back of his compound which was the main camp for his army of Muay Thai fighters. He was also the number one promoter, Somchai who went on the become a huge promotor at army owned Lumpini after Mr Khoa's asssasination in the early 90s worked for him with his co promoting army generals (rumour has it responsible for his evetual assasinatioin in Samut Sakorn).

Speak to any Thai(even non boxing fan) about Sor Thanikul or "Mr Khao" in that period before it's eventual decline in the early 2000s and they'll tell you how that gym dominated the scene. Some great great fighters came out of that gym.


By the way if you remmeber the film Kickboxer, well the scene where Vandamme goes to a gym to get training and they laugh at him, that is Sor Thanikul and the small fat man that laughs is Ajarn Bung the head trainer.

Sorry about the essay but I was a bit surprised is all.

 

It's a great thread you started mate. :good

(For me as a Newbie it's the best and most useful thread so far)

 

How did I forget the striking legend that is Boonlai Sor Thanikul of my little list:

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wO5pRWlhJck&feature=fvst[/ame]

Notice Ajan Bung in his corner.

There is some other stuff on Youtube, but not much. t's a shame because it seems to be a period of dominace without much accesible Video that doesn't reperesent the gyms prominance.

If you check youtube thier seems to be alot about a Gym in th UK called Sor Thanikul which obviously is not the one I'm talking about however one of the original gyms fighters seems to be training guys there, Khunsek a top bloke. The orignal gym in BKK closed in the early 2000s.

Anyway enjoy Boonlai!:bbb

 

Great post:good the more info the better.

Boonlai Thanikul is the only one I really knew. he fought a lot of great fighter from that era it seems samrak,superlek,namkabuan,Jongsanan traded wins and losses with the best of them. A lot of his fights are on youtube.

 

I love this guy :bowdown

Be sure to reply to my PM when you reach 50 posts my friend :good

 

:good

 

Thanks Yaca, I'll try and track those down on Youtube

Boonlai and Sombat where really the final era of Thanikul as a dominate Gym leaving a trail of greats over the two decades before them. Boonlai's brother was also pretty good in that final era.



A few later really good fighters did come out of the gym in the very late 90s early 2000s like Komkiet who always wore ladies lipstick into the ring until he got banned for taking a dive. He then opened up a little restaurant near the gym and his wife would make the best Kho Kaprow!!! Another notable at the end as we are on mainly a boxing forum was Saohin Srithai Condo, aka Saohin Sor Thanikul, aka Saohin N-Yoko. Not that famous but was a converted Muay Thai fighter who in his prime took Paulie Ayala 12 hard rounds and once he should have been long retired took an up and coming Jorge Linares 10 rounds with a detached retina.


The Gym was also loosely linked to Suwanchart Gym which has out survived Thaikul and has gone on to produce some notable standouts like Noppakhao Suwanchat a Rajadamnern Champion in his time.


As you guys seemed to like the stuff about Mr Khao and the background of the gym well there is an interesting bit of video out there if you can find it of the time a hand grenade was thrown ringside in the middle of a bout at either Lumpinee or Rajadamnern can’t remember which in I think the late 80s, this was an assassination attempt on Mr. Khao (and they think Haye giving Chisora a few knuckle sandwiches is bad!!!):shock:


One other little interesting silly fact about the gym. You know the first time you ever really see a Muay Thai fighter in a Hollywood movie was in Bloodsport with Vandamme. Well the Muay Thai fighter in that movie was a young Paulo Tocha and he learnt his stuff at Thanikul in the 80s. Hence the connection to Vandamme and Dennis Alexio for the movie Kickboxer. A bit of Muay Thai folk lore because those two movies inspired a whole generation of western Muay Thai fighters including me.



A bit of topic but I thought you guys would appreciate it.

 

Thanks mate, I love your encouragement as I'm totally new to anykind of forum including Facebook Twitter etc.

I definately will once I reach my 50, your book sounds really interesting. I'd love to hear more. I actually did post something on your visitors page as I didn't know what to do, thought it's be rude not to reply.

 

Good post, Dida's a good fighter just not reallymy cup of tea stylewise.

I love Kobal and fighters with a similar style, an all balls out stlye of fighting. When guys like him are up for it Thai baravado at its best. :happy

 

Have left you a message on your page in response, cheers :good

 

Not only do you "not give a **** about kickboxing" but you also don't know **** about it either...Dekkers is not the best non thai fighter...Anyone who follows the sport closely would know that...He had alot of losses and always had trouble with tall opponents. He was one of the most entertaining with a great style through.

Lol Benny the Jet and Dennis Alexio? LOL nice joke bro! Try Hoost, Aerts and Semmy.

 

Yeah to anyone who didn't just watch that 1 dekkers highlight and thinks he is god because of it..

Not that I dislike Dekkkers...I am a huge fan and he has a very entertaining aggressive style but he's not the best...He would have probably lost to guys like Souwer, Petrosyan, Masato, Kyshenko, Buakaw in k1...Dekkers style was awesome but their is a difference between being really exciting and being the best....

Jwp is a very good fighter to but not that great in kickboxing rules...