Ratanachai Sor Vorapin (born November 1, 1976) is a professional boxer and a former
WBO bantamweight champion. He is the younger brother of
Ratanapol Sor Vorapin, a former
IBF
The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...
strawweight champion. He is considered one of the few Thai boxers who have the opportunity to fight abroad very often. Sor Vorapin has fought 16 times abroad.
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Professional career
After winning 6 consecutive matches, he fought Ruangroj Kiatkriangkrai for the Thai light flyweight championship where he won by unanimous decision on September 28, 1992. In his first defense of that title 73 days later, he lost to Kompayak Chor Charoen on points and tasted his first defeat. He regained it on March 26, 1994 with TKO victory over Suksawat Torboonlert in two rounds.
Sor Vorapin had his first shot at a world title on April 24, 1999 where he battled Mark Johnson for the vacant IBF super flyweight title. Unsuccessfully, he lost via unanimous decision.
He then moved up in weight where he took on Tim Austin
Timothy Austin (born April 14, 1971) is an American former professional boxer. He is now a coach at the Cincinnati Golden Gloves gym in Cincinnati.
Amateur career
Austin had an outstanding amateur career, compiling a record of 113-9.
Amateu ...
for the IBF bantamweight title on December 15, 2001. Like his previous attempt for a world crown, Sor Vorapin lost the match in a similar fashion.
In his third world title shot, Sor Vorapin finally achieved victory. There, he won the WBO bantamweight title on May 7, 2004 with a unanimous decision win over Cruz Carbajal
Cruz Carbajal (born 3 May 1974) is a Mexican former professional boxer who competed from 1992 to 2012. He is the younger brother of Hall of Fame boxer Michael Carbajal.
Professional career
After making his debut in 1992, Carbajal won 14 of his ...
. He was the first Thai boxer to be crowned world champion of this institution. Following some wins in seven ordinary matches, Sor Vorapin defended his title by outpointing Mauricio Martinez on August 5, 2005. On his second title defense, however, he was TKO'd in seven rounds by Jhonny González on October 29, 2005.
He attempted to regain the title by challenging Gerry Peñalosa
Geronimo "Gerry" J. Peñalosa (born August 7, 1972) is a Filipino former professional boxer who competed from 1989 to 2010. He is a two-weight world champion, having held the WBC super-flyweight title from 1997 to 1998, and the WBO bantamweight ...
who won it from González. In the aftermath of the fight, Vorapin was defeated by an 8th round stoppage from Peñalosa on April 6, 2008 in the event "Invasion: Philippines vs. The World" at the Araneta Coliseum
The Araneta Coliseum, also currently known by naming rights sponsorship as Smart Araneta Coliseum, is an indoor multi-purpose sports arena that is part of the Araneta City in the Cubao area of Quezon City, Philippines. Nicknamed as "the Big Do ...
. Peñalosa knocked down the Thai thrice, in the 5th, 7th, and earlier in the eighth.
On September 14, 2008, Filipino boxer Michael Domingo scored a 9th-round technical knockout
A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving strikin ...
victory over Ratanachai Sor Vorapin at the New Cebu
Cebu (; ceb, Sugbo), officially the Province of Cebu ( ceb, Lalawigan sa Sugbo; tl, Lalawigan ng Cebu; hil, Kapuroan sang Sugbo), is a province of the Philippines located in the Central Visayas region, and consists of a main island and 16 ...
Coliseum
The Colosseum ( ; it, Colosseo ) is an oval amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, just east of the Roman Forum. It is the largest ancient amphitheatre ever built, and is still the largest standing amphitheatre in the world t ...
to retain the regional World Boxing Organization
The World Boxing Organization (WBO) is an organization which sanctions professional boxing bouts. It is recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) as one of the four major world championship groups, alongside the World Boxing ...
Oriental bantamweight
Bantamweight is a weight class in combat sports. For boxing, the range is above and up to . In kickboxing, a bantamweight fighter generally weighs between . In MMA, bantamweight is .
The name for the class is derived from bantam chickens. B ...
title.
Life after boxing
After retirement, he has worked as an assistant trainer at his former boxing gym Sor Vorapin
Sor Vorapin ( th, ส.วรพิน; stylized as S.Vorapin or S.Warrapin) is a Muaythai and professional boxing gym based in Bangkok, Thailand.
History
This gym was established in 1979 by the couple Surapon and Vorapin Rungsikulpipat (สุภ...
. Currently, he earns his living as a motorcycle taxi driver.
See also
*List of bantamweight boxing champions
This is a list of world bantamweight boxing champions, as recognized by the four major sanctioning organizations in boxing:
* The World Boxing Association (WBA), established in 1921 as the National Boxing Association (NBA). The WBA often recognize ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sor Vorapin, Ratanachai
1976 births
Living people
Bantamweight boxers
Super-flyweight boxers
World bantamweight boxing champions
World Boxing Organization champions
Southpaw boxers
Ratanachai Sor Vorapin
Ratanachai Sor Vorapin