WATCH: How fighting as a kid in seaside bars molded Thai megastar Tawanchai’s stone-cold attitude
Tawanchai PK Saenchai started doing Muay Thai as a hobby but no sooner began competing in it out of necessity at a young age. It was then when he started developing a go-getting mindset as a fighter which has led him to achieve the success he is now having.
ONE Championship recently shared a video on Instagram narrating the journey of the reigning ONE featherweight Muay Thai world champion.
It all began in the coastal city of Pattaya in Thailand, where Tawanchai learned and developed his skills by competing in a seaside bar. He won his first fight at the age of seven, earning 800 baht, or $20, which he used to help his family.
Since then, he has steadily grew in the sport, fighting in the Muay Thai circuit and earning a reputation as one of the fiercest competitors in the game.
It eventually led him to ONE Championship, where he continues to dominate the competition.
Check out the video below:
Tawanchai will once again shore up his standing as one of the top Muay Thai fighters today when he defends the featherweight gold against Thai veteran Jo Nattawut in the headlining contest at ONE 167 on June 7 at the Impact Arena in Bangkok, Thailand.
It will be a rematch of their highly competitive kickboxing showdown last October, which the 25-year-old sensation won by unanimous decision.
The event will also mark the third time Tawanchai will be defending the world title he seized in September 2022.
ONE 167 is available live and for free in U.S. primetime to North American fans with an active Amazon Prime Video subscription.
Chatri Sityodtong excited for Tawanchai-Nattawut redo
ONE Chairman and CEO Chatri Sityodtong is one of those excited to see Tawanchai PK Saenchai and Jo Nattawut run it back at ONE 167 in June 7 in Thailand.
The ONE executive highlighted that with the competitive route that the first encounter between the two took back in October, all indications point to another barnburner.
Sityodtong shared this in an interview session on Uprtalk with Antoine Pinto on YouTube, saying:
"Tawanchai and Jo Nattawut fought in kickboxing last year and it was a very close match. Tawanchai is eager to defend his belt, but Jo Nattawut's style is hard to predict. In the first fight it looked like he was constantly throwing weapons at random, but all of them looked sharp and seemed to have packed a punch."
Watch the interview below:
Tawanchai had himself a tough battle against Nattawut in their first encounter before winnning by unanimous decision. The contest was tightly fought, with both fighters scoring telling hits, that not a few viewed the outcome easily going the other way.