Sirimongkol Singmanasak (; born 2 March 1977) is a Thai

professional boxer Professional boxing, or prizefighting, is regulated, sanctioned boxing. Professional boxing bouts are fought for a purse that is divided between the boxers as determined by contract. Most professional fights are supervised by a regulatory auth ...

bare-knuckle boxer Bare-knuckle boxing (also known as bare-knuckle or bare-knuckle fighting) is a full-contact combat sport based on punching without any form of padding on the hands. The sport as it is known today originated in 17th-century England and, although s ...

and

kickboxer Kickboxing ( ) is a full-contact hybrid martial art and boxing type based on punching and kicking. Kickboxing originated in the 1950s to 1970s. The fight takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouth guards, shorts, and ...

. He is a world champion in two weight classes, having held the

World Boxing Council The World Boxing Council (WBC) is an international professional boxing organization. It is among the four major organizations which sanction professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), International Boxing Federation ...

(WBC)

bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

title in 1997, and the WBC

super-featherweight Super featherweight, also known as junior lightweight, is a boxing weight classes, weight division in professional boxing, contested between and . The super featherweight division was established by the New York Walker Law in 1920, although firs ...

title from 2002 to 2003. His other names were Sirimongkol Nakhon Thong Park View (ศิริมงคล นครทองปาร์ควิว), Sirimongkol Singwancha (ศิริมงคล สิงห์วังชา), Sirimongkol Nakornloung (ศิริมงคล นครหลวงโปรโมชั่น), and Sirimongkhon Iamthuam (ศิริมงคล เอี่ยมท้วม).

Biography and boxing career

Sirimongkol was born into a family closely connected to Muay Thai, with his father owning the "Singmanasak Boxing Gym" (ค่ายมวยสิงห์มนัสศักดิ์) and his brother fighting under the name "Manopchai Singmanasak" (มานพชัย สิงห์มนัสศักดิ์). His early interests in the Thai folk theatre form

Likay Likay (, , ) is a form of popular folk theatre from Central Thailand (not in Bangkok, where Teochew opera are folk theatre.). Its uniqueness is found in the combination of extravagant costumes with barely equipped stages and vaguely determined ...

were curtailed by his father, who encouraged him to pursue

boxing Boxing is a combat sport and martial art. Taking place in a boxing ring, it involves two people – usually wearing protective equipment, such as boxing glove, protective gloves, hand wraps, and mouthguards – throwing Punch (combat), punch ...

instead.

WBC world champion

Starting as an

amateur An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, autodidacticism, self-taught, user-generated, do it yourself, DI ...

in high school, Sirimongkol quickly ascended in professional boxing. He claimed the WBU

Super flyweight Super flyweight, also referred to as junior bantamweight, is a weight class in professional boxing, contested from and up to . History The first title match in this division was in 1980, when the World Boxing Council responded to pressure from A ...

and

Bantamweight Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports and weightlifting. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class ...

titles in 1995 and became the WBC Bantamweight Champion in August 1996 at just 19 years old, defeating

interim champion An interim championship is an alternate title that is awarded by the sanctioning bodies of professional boxing, and in other combat sports such as kickboxing, professional wrestling, and mixed martial arts. Occasionally, the champion of a particul ...

José Luis Bueno José Luis Bueno (born 8 December 1969) is a Mexican former professional boxer and former World Boxing Council, WBC and Lineal championship, Lineal Super Flyweight Champion. Bueno was also the trainer of former World Boxing Council, WBC Light Flyw ...

in Phitsanulok, Thailand. His title shot was earned through a victory over veteran Thai boxer Thanomsak Sithbaobay. Sirimongkol successfully defended his WBC bantamweight title three times. However, his reign ended in November 1997 when he lost to former Japanese world champion

Joichiro Tatsuyoshi is a former World Boxing Council (WBC) world bantamweight champion from Kurashiki, Okayama, Kurashiki, Okayama, Japan. His record is 20–7–1 (14 KOs). He is popular for his fight style and unique personality, and has appeared in several tele ...

in Osaka, Japan. He rebounded strongly, capturing the WBC Super featherweight title in 2002 with a knockout win over Kengo Nagashima, but lost the title a year later to

Jesús Chávez Jesús Gabriel Sandoval Chávez (; born November 12, 1972) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1994 to 2010. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBC super featherweight title from 2003 to 2004, and the IBF ...

Post-world title reign

In May 2007, Sirimongkol won the Asian Boxing Council (ABCO) super featherweight title. He then won the PABA

light welterweight Light welterweight, also known as junior welterweight or super lightweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional boxing In professional boxing, light welterweight is contested between the lightweight and welterweight divisions, ...

title in December 2007 before defending the title once in May 2008.

Arrest and later career

In 2009, Sirimongkol's career took a turn following his arrest for possession of

Ya ba ''Ya ba'' (, , literally 'crazy pill') is a drug containing a mixture of methamphetamine and caffeine. It was formerly known as ''yama'' (; literally 'horse drug'). Although it is illegal, it has considerable use in Southeast Asia. It is also k ...

. During his incarceration, he taught boxing to fellow inmates and continued to compete, winning the WBC Asia Continental

Welterweight Welterweight is a weight class in combat sports. Originally the term ''welterweight'' was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like muay Thai, taekwondo, and mixed martial arts also use it for their own weight division system to classify th ...

title. He successfully defended the WBC Asia Continental belt five times from 2012 to 2014. He was pardoned four years into a 20-year sentence. In October 2014, Sirimongkol defeated Dan Nazareno Jr. to win the WBO Asia Pacific

junior middleweight Light middleweight, also known as junior middleweight or super welterweight,PeBoxRec/ref> is a weight class in boxing but also may include other combat sports. Boxing The light middleweight division (also known as junior middleweight in the IBF o ...

title. He defended the WBO Asia Pacific belt twice in April 2015 and September 2015. His 51-fight winning streak was finally broken in 2017 by Uzbek boxer

Azizbek Abdugofurov Azizbek Abdugofurov (born 6 March 1992) is an Uzbekistani professional boxer who held the WBC Silver super-middleweight title from 2018 to March 2021. As an amateur, Abdugofurov represented Uzbekistan at the 2013 AIBA World Boxing Championships. ...

in an unsuccessful bid for the WBC Asia

middleweight Middleweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the middleweight division is contested above and up to . Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have beg ...

title, marking his first defeat in 14 years. After winning the UBO Inter-Continental light middleweight title in May 2017 and the Thai

light heavyweight Light heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight (boxing), cruiserweight. The light heavyweight class has ...

title September 2018, Sirimongkol announced his first retirement from boxing on September 20, 2018. He came out of retirement for two more fights, including unsuccessfully challenging Teerachai Sithmorseng for the

WBA Asia WBA Asia (formerly known as Eurasia Pacific Boxing Council, also known as EPBC) is an organisation for professional boxing in the Central Asia, Oceania, Pan Pacific, Eurasia and Southeast and Far East nations. Formed in 2014, it is headquartered ...

light heavyweight title in April 2021, before retiring once again.

Bare-knuckle boxing

Sirimongkol made his

bare-knuckle boxing Bare-knuckle boxing (also known as bare-knuckle or bare-knuckle fighting) is a full-contact combat sport based on punching without any form of padding on the hands. The sport as it is known today originated in 17th-century England and, although ...

debut at BKFC Thailand 1: The Game Changer on December 18, 2021, fighting under his real name of "Sirimongkol Iamthuam". His opponent was Iranian Brazilian jiu-jitsu and

full contact karate Full contact karate is any format of karate where competitors spar (also called Kumite) full-contact and allow a knockout as winning criterion. History Full contact karate competition comes in several different formats developed for the art o ...

practitioner Reza Goodary. Despite standing 168 cm and Goodary standing 195 cm, Sirimongkol controlled the majority of the fight and scored a knockdown to win via split decision.

BKFC Thailand Champion

Sirimongkol faced Mike Vetrila for the inaugural BKFC Thailand Light Heavyweight Championship at BKFC Thailand 2: Iconic Impact on May 7, 2022. He won the close fight via majority decision to become the first BKFC Thailand Light Heavyweight Champion.

Entertainment career

Sirimongkol, known for his striking appearance, was dubbed "Teppabud na yok" ("handsome divinity") by his Thai boxing fans. After losing the WBC world title in 1997, he transitioned into show business. His ventures included modeling for a women's fashion magazine, appearing on the 2003 Thai TV drama "Pret Wat Suthat" on Channel 7 and the 2008 martial arts film "

Chocolate Chocolate is a food made from roasted and ground cocoa beans that can be a liquid, solid, or paste, either by itself or to flavoring, flavor other foods. Cocoa beans are the processed seeds of the cacao tree (''Theobroma cacao''); unprocesse ...

", and featuring in a music video by the rock band Motive alongside

Dom Hetrakul Dom Hetrakul (; , born April 9, 1976 in Bangkok, Thailand), is an actor known for his appearances in many Thai TV shows and films. He has also starred in Hollywood productions, with a frequent presence in martial arts Martial arts are codifie ...

. In 2005, Sirimongkol faced a scandal involving nude photos. Police discovered gay pornographic magazines featuring his photos being sold at Or Tor Kor Market. This incident was covered by various media outlets.

Professional boxing record

Bare knuckle record

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Pattaya Pattaya is a city in Eastern Thailand, the second-largest city in Chonburi province and the List of municipalities in Thailand, eighth-largest city in Thailand. It is on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about southeast of Bangkok, and h ...

Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

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References

External links