Kaokor Galaxy
Encyclopedia
Nirote Saenkham in 
Petchaboon, Thailand
, is the twin brother of boxing
star Khaosai Galaxy
and twice world champion in his own right.
Like his brother, Nirote Saenkham started his career in the sport of kickboxing
and later switched to orthodox boxing. After becoming a sports star in his native country
, he followed a long-standing Thai custom of adopting an attention-getting pseudonym
and thus became known as Kaokor Galaxy .
Galaxy made his professional boxing début in 1985, winning his first seven fights before capturing the Thai Bantamweight
(118-pound) title in July 1986. He held that crown until 9 May 1988, when he upset Puerto Rico
's Wilfredo Vazquez
to take the WBA
Bantamweight title. With the victory, the Galaxy brothers became the first twins to ever be world champions.
Kaokor lost the title three months later in his first defence against Korea
n Sung-Kil Moon
, when an accidental clash of heads caused a sixth-round stoppage with Galaxy behind on points. He bounced back with five straight wins to earn a rematch with Moon on 9 July 1989. This time, Kaokor Galaxy won easily, taking all 12 rounds on two scorecards and eleven of the twelve on the third. Once again though, Galaxy lost the title in his first defence three months later, this time against Luisito Espinosa
. Surprisingly, he retired at that point with a record of 24 wins and just two losses. The defeat to Espinosa was unexpected, but Galaxy was caught with a left hook, and about 20 seconds later just collapsed out of thin air. Retirement followed defeat, no doubt the possibility of severe injury was the uppermost thought in Galaxy's mind.
Petchaboon, ThailandThailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, is the twin brother of boxing
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
star Khaosai Galaxy
Khaosai Galaxy
Khaosai Galaxy is a former professional Thai super flyweight boxer and Muaythai kickboxer. Khaosai defended his WBA world title 19 times in seven years , winning 16 of his title fights by knockouts. A member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame he is widely considered as one of the greatest...
and twice world champion in his own right.
Like his brother, Nirote Saenkham started his career in the sport of kickboxing
Kickboxing
Kickboxing refers to a group of martial arts and stand-up combat sports based on kicking and punching, historically developed from karate, Muay Thai and western boxing....
and later switched to orthodox boxing. After becoming a sports star in his native country
Country
A country is a region legally identified as a distinct entity in political geography. A country may be an independent sovereign state or one that is occupied by another state, as a non-sovereign or formerly sovereign political division, or a geographic region associated with a previously...
, he followed a long-standing Thai custom of adopting an attention-getting pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
and thus became known as Kaokor Galaxy .
Galaxy made his professional boxing début in 1985, winning his first seven fights before capturing the Thai Bantamweight
Bantamweight
Bantamweight is usually a class in boxing for boxers who weigh above 115 pounds and up to 118 pounds . However, in Mixed Martial Arts it is 134-136 pounds . Wrestling also has similar weight classes including bantamweight...
(118-pound) title in July 1986. He held that crown until 9 May 1988, when he upset Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico
Puerto Rico , officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico , is an unincorporated territory of the United States, located in the northeastern Caribbean, east of the Dominican Republic and west of both the United States Virgin Islands and the British Virgin Islands.Puerto Rico comprises an...
's Wilfredo Vazquez
Wilfredo Vázquez
Wilfredo Vázquez is a retired Puerto Rican professional boxer. He is a former World Champion at three different weights, Bantamweight, Super bantamweight and Featherweight.-Early life and amateur career:...
to take the WBA
World Boxing Association
The World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
Bantamweight title. With the victory, the Galaxy brothers became the first twins to ever be world champions.
Kaokor lost the title three months later in his first defence against Korea
Korea
Korea ) is an East Asian geographic region that is currently divided into two separate sovereign states — North Korea and South Korea. Located on the Korean Peninsula, Korea is bordered by the People's Republic of China to the northwest, Russia to the northeast, and is separated from Japan to the...
n Sung-Kil Moon
Sung-Kil Moon
Moon Sung-Kil is a former two-division world champion boxer from South Korea. His name is also rendered Sung Kil Moon.- Amateur career :...
, when an accidental clash of heads caused a sixth-round stoppage with Galaxy behind on points. He bounced back with five straight wins to earn a rematch with Moon on 9 July 1989. This time, Kaokor Galaxy won easily, taking all 12 rounds on two scorecards and eleven of the twelve on the third. Once again though, Galaxy lost the title in his first defence three months later, this time against Luisito Espinosa
Luisito Espinosa
Luisito Pio Espinosa is a retired boxer from the Philippines who won World titles in two different weight divisions....
. Surprisingly, he retired at that point with a record of 24 wins and just two losses. The defeat to Espinosa was unexpected, but Galaxy was caught with a left hook, and about 20 seconds later just collapsed out of thin air. Retirement followed defeat, no doubt the possibility of severe injury was the uppermost thought in Galaxy's mind.