Khaosai Galaxy
Encyclopedia
Khaosai Galaxy is a former professional Thai
super flyweight
boxer
and Muaythai kickboxer. Khaosai defended his WBA
world title 19 times in seven years (1984–1991), 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 boxing
champions of all time. He is listed #19 on Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.
province, Thailand
. He was a Muay Thai
fighter in the early 1980s, and took the professional name Galaxy from a nightclub owned by his manager. Khaosai had tremendous punching power, particularly in his soon-to-be legendary left hand. On the advice of his manager and trainer, he switched to Marquis of Queensbury style and began training as a western style boxer.
In Muay Thai his ring name
is Daoden Muangsithep and Khaosai Wangchomphu.
As he gained experience, Khaosai began to develop into a more refined boxer, learning combination punching to complement his deadly left. His favorite punch, a straight left to the mid section, translates roughly as "the left hand that drills intestines."
Incredibly strong, he was never out-muscled, while opponents who tried the traditional stick-and-move techniques found he had quick feet and was able to block their movements.
Khaosai won his next three fights and claimed the Thai bantamweight title in 1982. He won 15 consecutive fights by knockout and climbed in the world rankings to become super flyweight (115-pound) WBA
world champion Jiro Watanabe
's mandatory challenger by the summer of 1984.
When Watanabe failed to defend his title against Khaosai, the WBA stripped him and matched Khaosai against undefeated Eusebio Espinal for the vacant championship on November 21, 1984. Khaosai knocked out Espinal in the sixth round, beginning the longest title reign in his division's history.
Khaosai defended his WBA title 19 times over the next seven years, winning 16 of his title fights by knockouts. In the mid-1980s, when world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson
was in his prime and scoring knockouts over everyone, boxing fans nicknamed Khaosai The Thai Tyson for knockout wins.
Khaosai fought only once outside of Asia, when he defended his title in 1986 against unbeaten (and future WBA bantamweight titleholder) Israel Contreras
in Curaçao
. He had two title fights in Japan
, one in Korea
and one in Indonesia
. The rest were in Thailand, where he often fought for purses in excess of $100,000 in front of huge crowds. That, plus the fact that few top fighters anywhere were willing to challenge Khaosai, made him relatively unknown in the West.
In 2006, he starred in a music video for a song by fellow boxer Somluck Kamsing
. Khaosai portrayed a shy man being approached by a young woman.
In 1988, his twin brother, fighting under the name Kaokor Galaxy
, captured the WBA
bantamweight title, making the Saenkham brothers the only twins to ever be world boxing champions.
in 1999 and remains a well known Boxer
throughout Thailand.
Thai people
The Thai people, or Siamese, are the main ethnic group of Thailand and are part of the larger Tai ethnolinguistic peoples found in Thailand and adjacent countries in Southeast Asia as well as southern China. Their language is the Thai language, which is classified as part of the Kradai family of...
super flyweight
Super flyweight
Super flyweight is a weight division in professional boxing. It is alternatively referred to as junior bantamweight and light bantamweight...
boxer
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...
and Muaythai kickboxer. Khaosai defended his 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...
world title 19 times in seven years (1984–1991), winning 16 of his title fights by knockouts. A member of the International Boxing Hall of Fame
International Boxing Hall of Fame
The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...
he is widely considered as one of the greatest 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...
champions of all time. He is listed #19 on Ring Magazine's list of 100 greatest punchers of all time.
Muay Thai career
Khaosai was born as Sura Saenkham in PhetchabunPhetchabun
Phetchabun is a town in Thailand, capital of the Phetchabun Province. It covers the tambon Nai Mueang of the Phetchabun district, along the Pa Sak River...
province, Thailand
Thailand
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...
. He was a Muay Thai
Muay Thai
Muay Thai is a combat sport from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese kickboxing systems, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and muay Lao from Laos...
fighter in the early 1980s, and took the professional name Galaxy from a nightclub owned by his manager. Khaosai had tremendous punching power, particularly in his soon-to-be legendary left hand. On the advice of his manager and trainer, he switched to Marquis of Queensbury style and began training as a western style boxer.
In Muay Thai his ring name
Ring name
A ring name is a stage name used by a professional wrestler, martial artist, or boxer. While some ring names may have a fictitious first name and surname, others may simply be a nickname, such as The Undertaker.-Wrestling:...
is Daoden Muangsithep and Khaosai Wangchomphu.
Boxing style
Lacking the amateur boxing experience common to most Western professional boxers, Khaosai's skills originally were limited, and he relied on toughness and his fearsome punching power to win. His southpaw style was based on closing his opponent and firing his left hand whenever he saw an opening. His right hand was used mainly to judge the distance for his left. All of his knockouts came by his left, which is arguably the hardest single punch in the history of the lower weight classes.As he gained experience, Khaosai began to develop into a more refined boxer, learning combination punching to complement his deadly left. His favorite punch, a straight left to the mid section, translates roughly as "the left hand that drills intestines."
Incredibly strong, he was never out-muscled, while opponents who tried the traditional stick-and-move techniques found he had quick feet and was able to block their movements.
Boxing career
Khaosai began his international style boxing career in December 1980. He won all of his first six fights, which earned him a shot at the Thailand bantamweight (118-pound) title on July 29, 1981 against Sakda Saksuree. He lost on a points decision. It was to be the last fight he would ever lose in the ring.Khaosai won his next three fights and claimed the Thai bantamweight title in 1982. He won 15 consecutive fights by knockout and climbed in the world rankings to become super flyweight (115-pound) 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...
world champion Jiro Watanabe
Jiro Watanabe
is a Japanese former boxerWatanabe, who fought only in Japan and South Korea, was one of the first World Super flyweight champions, as the division was relatively new when he was crowned.-Biography:...
's mandatory challenger by the summer of 1984.
When Watanabe failed to defend his title against Khaosai, the WBA stripped him and matched Khaosai against undefeated Eusebio Espinal for the vacant championship on November 21, 1984. Khaosai knocked out Espinal in the sixth round, beginning the longest title reign in his division's history.
Khaosai defended his WBA title 19 times over the next seven years, winning 16 of his title fights by knockouts. In the mid-1980s, when world heavyweight champion Mike Tyson
Mike Tyson
Michael Gerard "Mike" Tyson is a retired American boxer. Tyson is a former undisputed heavyweight champion of the world and holds the record as the youngest boxer to win the WBC, WBA and IBF world heavyweight titles, he was 20 years, 4 months and 22 days old...
was in his prime and scoring knockouts over everyone, boxing fans nicknamed Khaosai The Thai Tyson for knockout wins.
Khaosai fought only once outside of Asia, when he defended his title in 1986 against unbeaten (and future WBA bantamweight titleholder) Israel Contreras
Israel Contreras
Israel Contreras is a former Venezuelan boxer who won the World Boxing Association bantamweight title. He had a supporting role in the Mel Gibson film Apocalypto.-Boxing career:...
in Curaçao
Curaçao
Curaçao is an island in the southern Caribbean Sea, off the Venezuelan coast. The Country of Curaçao , which includes the main island plus the small, uninhabited island of Klein Curaçao , is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands...
. He had two title fights in Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, one in 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...
and one in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
. The rest were in Thailand, where he often fought for purses in excess of $100,000 in front of huge crowds. That, plus the fact that few top fighters anywhere were willing to challenge Khaosai, made him relatively unknown in the West.
Retirement
He fought for the last time on December 21, 1991 in Bangkok, beating Armando Castro over 12 rounds. A few weeks later, he announced his retirement with a record of 49 wins against only one defeat, and never attempted a comeback.Life After Boxing
Not long after his retirement to the boxing profession, Khaosai approached and took part in Thai entertainment industry , firstly, releasing his single of a song "Khob Khun Krub", meaning "thank you", then taking part in TV series and movies, particularly of a comedy type. In 2005, while he was taking part in a film making, he was punched in face by a drunk who was his boxing fan but wishing to obtain Khaosai's shirt for collection but was denied. The incident went on the first page of the next day paper with a photo of Khaosai standing next to the drunk guy both smiling while Khaosai having a bandage in his face.In 2006, he starred in a music video for a song by fellow boxer Somluck Kamsing
Somluck Kamsing
Somluck Kamsing is a Thai boxer. His name is sometimes spelled as Somrak Khamsing.During the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok, Thailand, Kamsing lit the torch during the Games' opening ceremony. Kamsing was born in Khon Kaen...
. Khaosai portrayed a shy man being approached by a young woman.
In 1988, his twin brother, fighting under the name Kaokor Galaxy
Kaokor Galaxy
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...
, captured 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, making the Saenkham brothers the only twins to ever be world boxing champions.
Honors
He was elected to the International Boxing Hall of FameInternational Boxing Hall of Fame
The modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...
in 1999 and remains a well known Boxer
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...
throughout Thailand.