Seksan Or Kwanmuang has the perfect style to become an international Muay Thai star with his trademark aggression and ferocity. Over the years he has picked up numerous ‘Fight of the Year’ awards at both Rajdamnern and Lumpinee.
His nickname is ‘Khon Mai Yom Khon’ which translates as ‘The Man Who Yields to No-One’. Given how ferociously Seksan fights his initial motivation for starting the sport is slightly surprising,
“I had my first fight when I was 8 years old. I had an older brother that fought and I was getting bullied a lot and made to cry, so I wanted to try it out. I won my first fight on points and really enjoyed it and I got paid 100 baht.”
Rob Cox
Big name
Seksan has since gone on to become one of the biggest names on the Thai stadium scene. On March 10th he gets the opportunity to showcase his ferocious talents on the ‘Rise World Series 2019 show at the Ota City Gymnasium in Tokyo.
“I have fought overseas before but mainly in China. I am really excited about fighting in Japan as I have never been before and it is somewhere I have always wanted to fight,” Seksan said.
Seksan fights in the first round of the 61kgs eight man tournament alongside Japanese fighters Taiga Kawabe, Taiju Shiratori, Yuki and old adversary Genji Umeno and Korean fighter Chan Hyeong Lee, China’s Lu Jun and Brazilian Hector Santiago.
Rob Cox
Familiar foe
In the first round Seksan fights Taiga. He is the younger brother of Hiroya who spent a long time training and fighting in Thailand during his younger days and was seen as something of a child prodigy.
Seksan has seen Taiga in action before and is confident he will have too much for the Japanese fighter,
“I have seen Taiga fight before, when we both fought together on the same show in China. He has good technique, more of a fast in and out style. I have a lot more experience and better weapons.”
No fear
He’s also been in with Umeno and it is fair to say Seksan isn’t intimidated by any of the other seven fighters in the tournament,
“The other fighters in the tournament don’t worry me too much. Genji I beat before, but I don’t think he is as strong now as back then and doesn’t seem to be able to take a hard shot as good as before. I won’t take any risks though as there is a lot at stake.”
Seksan was due to face off against Kulabdam Sorjorpiakuthai on the 12th of February in a highly anticipated clash between two of the sports most entertaining warriors, but Seksan had to pull out a few days before due to an elbow injury,
Seksan spoke about the injury and how his training regime differs when he fights outside of Thailand,
“The injury is getting better and it shouldn’t affect the fight as there are no elbows allowed under the Rise ruleset. I have changed my training a little from the usual stadium fights, I am working more on fast combinations and due to the limited one knee in clinch rule, working more on throwing my knees from long range,” he said.
Firmly established
Seksan has firmly established himself as one of the top dogs in Thailand and is now looking to compete internationally as often as possible,
“There is no pressure on you overseas from the gamblers and the people that come to watch treat you with respect like true fans. It is also easier for me to fight three rounds as I always usually start quite quickly and the money is better,” he said.
Despite coming towards the end of his Thailand stadium career Seksan still feels he has a lot to offer the sport. He hopes to follow in his the footsteps of one of his idols by making a name for himself overseas,
“I will carry on fighting as long as my body allows me to compete at a high level, I still feel I can go on for some time yet. My main idol in the sport is Buakaw [Banchamek] and I want to go on to become as famous as him around the world.”
After his career has finished he hopes for a return to his roots,
“I would like to have my own gym, down in my home village in Nakhon Sri Thammarat in the South of Thailand. I want to return to the countryside where it is very peaceful and try to develop some young fighters.”
