Wanheng Menayothin was looking to make it 55-0 when he faced compatriot Petchmanee Kokietgym in Nakhon Sawan yesterday. But the WBC 105lbs champion lost his title and his unblemished record after dropping a decision to his Thai rival.
Petchmanee got off to a bright start in the fight landing with a solid right in he opening round and catching Wanheng with a few hard body shots. The champion came to life in the second, catching his opponent early on with a hard right.
Petchmanee looked to hit and move but Wanheng seemed the more determined and landed with hard shots to the head and body. The challenger looked the sharper for the next three rounds as he moved well and looked to make his undefeated opponent miss and pick him off with fast counters.
Heavy shots
In round four there was a clash of heads and Petchmanee was told by the referee to watch his head as he came in. By the end of the fifth Wanheng looked like he was struggling a little to find his rhythm.
Wanheng came back strong in the sixth, starting fast and attacking Petchmanee with heavy shots. The challenger looked to soak up the attacks and came back with a solid hook, but was told off again by the referee after another clash of heads.
Wanheng kept up the pressure in the seventh round, constantly attacking Panya, but the challenger still looked fresh and showed no signs of wilting. Towards the end of the round the champion had his first talking to from the referee for hitting on the break.
Working the body
In the eighth Wanheng pushed the pace again, landing with a hard right early on. Petchmanee looked to use his movement to good effect again and kept looking for the counter and working the body.
Towards the end of the round Wanheng managed to trap Petchmanee in a corner and unload with some hard shots. At the end of the round with Thailand’s open scoring policy, the scores were revealed with the challenger ahead by 77-75 on all three scorecards.
This spurred Wanheng on and he pushed forward looking to land with more hard shots. Petchmanee kept moving and looking for sharp counters and working the body, trying to slow down the champion.
The tenth round saw Wanheng start fast, but Petchmanee moved well again, making his opponent miss and landing with some slick counter shots. The champion opened up with a barrage of shots towards the end of the round, but the challenger managed to soak up a lot on his gloves.
Solid left
Petchmanee started the faster of the two in the eleventh round and carried on working the body. Wanheng landed a solid left hook, but the challenger kept moving well, making him miss and countering back.
The final round saw Wanheng come out fast and land with some hard right hands. Petchmanee looked to soak up the attacks and counter but got caught by a heavy left hook.
Petchmanee sensed he had a lead to protect and kept looking to hit and move, landing a salvo of fast jabs. At the final bell he looked confident while Wanheng seemed resigned to defeat.
All three judges scored the fight in favour of Petchmanee by 115-113. He improves to 35-1 and claims the WBC 105lbs title while Wanheng slips to 54-1 after tasting defeat for the first time in his boxing career.
