Ratanapol Sor Vorapin ( th, รัตนพล ส.วรพิน; born Preecha Charoenthara ( th, ปรีชา เจริญธารา), formerly ''Anucha Phothong'' (อนุชา โพธิ์ทอง)) is a Thai former professional boxer. He is the older brother of former

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 ...

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 mixed martial arts, MMA, bantamweight is . The name for the class is derived from Ba ...

champion Ratanachai Sor Vorapin.

Early life

Vorapin was born on June 6, 1974, to Somjai and Somjit Phothong in Dan Khun Thot, Nakhon Ratchasima province. Despite having large amounts of land, Vorapin, his parents, and his 14 siblings were impoverished farmers, as the mountainous ground was poor soil for agriculture. Because of his poverty, he became a boxer at age fourteen in

Muaythai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

using the names "Tonaonoy Toichainee" (ทนเอาหน่อย ต่อยใช้หนี้) and "Lion Luknamjai" (ไลอ้อน ลูกน้ำใจ) sponsored by Yindee Juntacup, a local celebrity.

Professional career

Vorapin traveled to

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

to fight Muaythai under

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 (สุ� ...

Boxing Gym. The name "Ratanapol" is actually the name of another fighter. Going pro in 1990, Ratanapol fought in the place of

Chana Porpaoin Chana Porpaoin ( th, ชนะ ป.เปาอินทร์; born 1966-03-25 in Lom Sak District, Phetchabun Province, Thailand) is a Thai boxer. Chana and his younger brother, Songkram Porpaoin, became only the second set of twins to both ca ...

, out because of his injured nose, and defeated his opponent. Because of that victory, he received serious support. When Fahlan Lukmingkwan lost the

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 ...

Mini flyweight championship to Filipino Manny Melchor in mid-1992, Ratanapol was encouraged by Sr. Col. Banju Ongsangkune and Suchart "Pe Poster" Kerdmek to return to Thailand. On December 10, 1992, at

Nimibutr Stadium Nimibutr Stadium (sometimes referred to as Nimibutr Gymnasium) is an indoor sporting arena located in Bangkok, Thailand. The capacity of the arena is 5,600 spectators. It was built in 1963 and is part of the National Stadium complex. It is used ...

, he scored a 12-round

split decision A split decision (SD) is a winning criterion in boxing, most commonly in full-contact combat sports, in which two of the three judges score one particular competitor as the winner, while the third judge scores for the other competitor. A split dec ...

victory over Manny Melchor to win the Mini flyweight title. He would defend that title against twelve boxers, but he lost the title on the scales on March 15, 1996, because he could not make his weight 105 pounds to qualify. On May 18 the same year, however, he returned as the world champion and he retained it six times until December 27, 1997, when he received a 5th-round TKO loss to South African

Zolani Petelo Zolani Petelo (born 21 September 1975) is a South African former professional boxer who competed from 1993 to 2005. He held the IBF mini-flyweight title from 1997 to 2000 and challenged for the IBF junior-flyweight title in 2001. Profession ...

at Songkhla province,

southern Thailand Southern Thailand, Southern Siam or Tambralinga is a southernmost cultural region of Thailand, separated from Central Thailand region by the Kra Isthmus. Geography Southern Thailand is on the Malay Peninsula, with an area of around , bounded ...

. He had two unsuccessful attempts at the IBF

Junior flyweight Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a weight class in boxing. Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York legalized boxing in 1920, ...

title, first dropping a unanimous decision to

Will Grigsby William Henry Grigsby (born March 19, 1970) is an American former professional boxer who competed from 1988 to 2007 and held the IBF junior flyweight title twice between 1998 and 2006. He also won the WBO junior flyweight title in 2000, but was ...

on December 18, 1998. And then on December 2, 2000, he received a 3rd-round TKO loss to Mexican Ricardo "El Finito" López in Las Vegas. Near the end of the career, he changed his manager to Kokiet "Sia Ko" Panichyarom of Kokiet Group and promoted to Flyweight and won the PABA title.

Boxing style

Ratanapol had a heavy left punch and a long reach but little footwork or agility. His right hand was used mainly to judge distance for his left, similar to the famed

Khaosai Galaxy Khaosai Galaxy ( th, เขาทราย แกแล็คซี่, born, 15 May 1959) is a Thai former professional boxer who competed between 1980 and 1991. He was also a Muay Thai practitioner. He held the WBA super-flyweight title betwee ...

, even receiving the nickname "Little Khaosai" from Thai boxing fans. In addition every time before the bout, he shouted ''"Chaiyo...Chaiyo...Ya Mo Ok Suek!!''" (ไชโย...ไชโย...ย่าโมออกศึก!!; lit: "Cheer...Cheer... Grandma Mo to Battle!!") to create a frenzy.หน้า 108-111, ''"เขาทรายน้อย" รัตนพล ส.วรพิน แชมป์โลกชาวไทยคนที่สิบเจ็ด รุ่นมินิฟลายเวท IBF.''. "22 แชมป์โลกชาวไทย" นิตยสารคนเด็ด (เฉพาะกิจพิเศษ) โดย "ชายพจน์": ตุลาคม 38

Retirement

After retirement, Ratanapol's life was very difficult. Burdened by debt, he sold street vendor noodles in

Bang Lamphu Bang Lamphu or spelled Banglampoo and Banglamphu ( th, บางลำพู, ; in the past, it was often misspelled บางลำภู) is a neighbourhood in Bangkok located in Phra Nakhon District. The history of the Bang Lamphu community da ...

neighborhood near Sor Vorapin Boxing Gym with his wife, and sold DVDs of his own biography on the Bangkok streets. At the most stressful moments, he attempted suicide by hanging with an electric wire He also received ordination at

Wat Phra Dhammakaya Wat Phra Dhammakaya ( th, วัดพระธรรมกาย, , ) is a Buddhist temple ('' wat'') in Khlong Luang district, in the Pathum Thani province north of Bangkok, Thailand. It was founded in 1970 by the ''maechi'' (nun) Chandra ...

Politics

In politically Ratnapol alliance with the

United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship The United Front for Democracy Against Dictatorship (UDD) ( th, แนวร่วมประชาธิปไตยต่อต้านเผด็จการแห่งชาติ; นปช., alternatively translated as National Demo ...

(UDD) or Red Shirts, and joined the protesters on several occasions such as 2005–06 Thai political crisis, or 2013–14 Thai political crisis etc.

Professional boxing record

Titles in boxing

''Major World Titles:'' *

Mini Flyweight Champion (December 1992) (May 1996) (2x) ''(105 lbs)'' ''Regional & International Titles:'' *

International Mini Flyweight Champion (June 1992) ''(105 lbs)'' * PABA

Flyweight Flyweight is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Flyweight is a class in boxing which includes fighters weighing above 49 kg (108 lb) and up to 51 kg (112 lb). Professional boxing The flyweight division was the last of bo ...

Champion (November 2007) (May 2009) (2x) ''(112 lbs)''

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sor Vorapin, Ratanapol 1974 births Living people Mini-flyweight boxers Light-flyweight boxers Flyweight boxers World mini-flyweight boxing champions International Boxing Federation champions Ratanapol Sor Vorapin Ratanapol Sor Vorapin Southpaw boxers