Jomthong Chuwattana vs Kaew Fairtex 2009

This fight was in Japan. I've introduced Jomthong before but, in short, Jomthong and Kaew are both former champions who are still fighting at a high level. Kaew's currently in the army and Jomthong is still competing in Muay Thai. Both take (in Kaew's case, took) occasional fights internationally.

This is a fun bout to watch because both are outside fighters with good technical boxing, including head movement and footwork. This type of match can be hard to find because, in Thailand, a lot of fighters find success on the inside with clinchwork. An outside fight might be forced to adapt, based on the opponent. For example, Kaew fought similarly against Genki Yamomoto, but against Chalermdet Infinity was much more static. The same goes for Jomthong who, against Anuwat Kaewsamrit, employed a lot more footwork and head movement than he does against most opponents. Their styles in this case might also reflect Japanese scoring preferences.

Jomthong wears blue shorts this bout, and Kaew red.

Pajunsuk vs Lin Jian Shen 2003

Chinese and Thai promoters will sometimes host events matching San Da athletes against Muay Thai athletes. Results are mixed. The events sometimes produce exciting bouts, but often the styles clash and frustrate one another. The regulations also leave something to be desired. Rules are inconsistent from event to event and even, on occasion, within one event and scoring tends to favor San Da fighters with throws heavily valued. Good fights do happen, though, and sometimes the techniques of both styles come through in a match. It's also a good showcase of China's San Da athletes who rarely venture into foreign promotions. In the past few years it's been more common to see these events being held by Chinese promoters. This is from an older event in 2003, however, when promoters were more willing to put on events in sequence in China then Thailand.

A lot of the Muay Thai fighters seem to go into these matches unprepared to deal with San Da takedowns and lose lopsidedly because of it, even if they deal more physical damage to their opponents. Pajunsuk is the rare nakmuay with experience in San Da. Since leaving Thailand to fight internationally, Pajunsuk has fought a wealth of opponents and it does not surprise me that he decided to take some time to train San Da. The throws would benefit his style in particular as he's been noted for employing pretty spectacular clinch dumps. He's big for a Thai Muay Thai fighter, being about 5' 10" and fighting as high as 75 kg. It is the case in many of these matches, though not this one, that the Thai fighter seems to give up height, and even weight, to the Chinese fighters.

Lin Jian Shen is a relatively unknown fighter, not having Pajunsuk's international experience. Keep in mind, though, that China tends to send quality representatives from the San Da circuits to these competitions. And judging by his presence in the ring and disciplined technique, he seems an experienced athlete. He wears the red shorts in this, and Pajunsuk the white.

Part 1

Wanchalong Sitsonong vs Werachai Wor Wiwatanont 2010

Wanchalong's been up in the major stadium rankings for a couple of years now. According to Muaythai2000.com, he was also recently the 108 lb light flyweight champion at Lumpini. He seems to give up height in his weightclass, but obviously has fared quite well. He is a well-rounded, intellgent fighter who opens up quite aggressively. He fights in red here.

Werachai is also in the Lumpini rankings, once again according to Muaythai2000.com, but a weight class higher at 112 lb flyweight. From what I've seen, he can be a bit of a cocky fighter, and is quite elusive. Werachai wears blue in this bout.

Nonsai Sor Sanykon vs Alex Vogel 2010

This fight took place at an event entitled Germany vs. Thailand. Nonsai Sor Sanykon first attracted some notice internationally by beating Dzabhar Askerov, himself famous for his stint on The Contender Asia. From the little I've seen of Nonsai, he's a strong kicker who fights a solid game based on controlling his opponents with powerful middle kicks.

This is the first fight I've seen of Alex Vogel. He seems to fight tense, somewhat to his detriment, though his defense is conscientious. Also, he seems to have trouble reading his opponent when under pressure and it's safe to assume that Nonsai has the edge in experience over him in this matchup.

Nonsai wears the blue gloves and Vogel the red.


Part 1

Genki Yamamoto vs Chakapop 2004

Genki Yamamoto is a recently retired fighter formerly of the NJKF (New Japan Kickboxing Federation). That federation is now defunct and Genki has not fought in some years. That said, he is worth visiting because of the sheer aggressiveness in his style and the high caliber of his opponents. He's had bouts with Masahiro Yamamoto, Wanlop Weerasacreck, and Kaew Fairtex. Genki wears red in this match.

I don't have much information on Chakapop. He is not a well known fighter internationally but I would assume he is of a fairly decent level if he's fighting at Lumpinee. Size-wise, he looks similar to Genki and is a good fit for the 135-140 lb range. He wears the blue.

Albert Kraus vs Yoshihiro Sato 2007

This isn't a Muay Thai fight, but I get to post what I want. I"ll probably throw in an inspirational boxing fight or even an MMA fight, if their technique doesn't look too disgusting. (You know what I mean. There are five guys in American MMA who look like they know how to punch and kick and three of them are named Anderson Silva.)

Yoshihiro Sato is a Muay Thai fighter with quite a pedigree on the Japanese circuit. Before fighting in K-1 he was a fighter for the AJKF (All Japan Kickboxing Federation), which allows all Muay Thai weapons. Sato's build is excellent for the stabbing knees he likes to use and, if you watch his runs through the Japan Max Grand Prix, he lands a lot of KO knees to his opponents' heads. I think he could be an excellent knee-fighter a la Dieselnoi Chor Thanasukarn if K-1 didn't have its silly no-pulling-the-head-down and one-knee-in-clinch rules. On the AJKF circuit, he has wins over Kaolan Kaovichit, Fuji Chalmsak, and Peter Crooke. In K-1, it took him a while to start stringing wins together but he's beaten high level opponents, most famously Buakaw Por Pramuk by KO. He has wins over Mike Zambidis, Murat Direkci, Gago Drago, Kaoklai Kaennorsing, and his fight with Masato in the 2008 Max Semi-Finals was hotly contested. Also, despite being a fairly old (for a fighter) 29, he continues to show gradual but tangible improvements in technique and performance. He wears the blue gloves in this match.

Albert Kraus's rivalry with Masato in 2002 and 2003 really helped put K-1 Max on the radar. They had an epic four fights with Kraus winning first for the 2002 belt, drawing the second, and Masato taking the last two, first for the 2003 belt and then to advance to the final with Buakaw in 2004. Kraus has since fought nearly everyone on the K-1 circuit and with generally positive results. His performance has been slightly inconsistent, as evidenced by his KO by Murat Direkci and the decision loss (with a KD) against Gago Drago, but he has posted wins over top-flight opponents. He favors a volume punching style but with enough power to give some fighters problems. He has two wins over Yoshihiro Sato, a TKO over Andy Souwer, wins against Mike Zambidis, John Wayne Parr, Virgil Kalakoda, and Buakaw Por Pramuk. Craftier opponents like Gevorg Petrosyan, Andy Souwer, and Buakaw Por Pramuk have been able to stymie his offense, but Kraus is a bad fight for almost anyone not at that highest level. Kraus wears the red gloves.

Part 1

Sudsakorn Sor Klinmee vs Farid Khider 2009

Sudsakorn Sor Klinmee is a fighter out of Thailand who's been gaining popularity internationally. He beat Kongfah Audonmuang, the then 140 lb Lumpini champ, as well as Noppadet Chengsimiw Gym, who was rated no.1 at that weight. Sudsakorn originally fought of of Sitjaipetch, Craig O'Flynn's gym and has since fought at weights up to 155 lb, sometimes under K-1 rules, scoring notable wins over Andrei Kulebin and Chahid Oulad el Hadj. Sudsakorn wears the shorts with the patterned border.

I don't know much about Farid Khider. Judging from his style and the apparent ruleset of this match, I'd guess he doesn't fight Muay Thai rules all the time. His antics look like they'd be more fitting in kickboxing match. He is an experienced fighter, having fought Jean Charles Skarbowsky, Attachai Fairtex, and Yuya Yamomoto (from the Japanese K-1 scene). Farid wears the colors of France in this fight.

Lertsila Chumpaetour vs Jomthong Chuwattana 2007

Lertsila is a slick, evasive fighter who's been fighting at the top level in Thailand for around 10 years now. The reason he's still around is probably because his style lets him minimize damage so well. Jomthong's been in the top ranks of the major stadiums now for a while, too. He was apparently something of a prodigy, featuring very strong and complete skills since his entrance to the Bangkok Muay Thai circuit. Both are veterans now and still fighting, though Jomthong's more of a contender, since Lertsila's fighting a bit above his best weight.

The video poster says this went down in 2007 when Jomthong was 17. It's very impressive for him to be fighting a fighter on Lertsila's level at that age. Lertsila wears the blue shorts and Jomthong the red in this bout.


Pt 1

Jean Charles Skarbowsky vs Robert Kaennorsing

Jean Charles Skarbowsky is an awesome fighter to watch. His fluid power-punching style makes for exciting fights without compromising a relaxed rhythm and strong technique. Robert Kaennorsing is, likewise, an old school legend. I don't know much about him, but from what I've seen, he's a cocky, technical fighter with some serious skills.

This fight was in Vegas and probably went down in the late '90s. Skarbowsky wears white shorts and Robert wears the M-150 shorts.