World Lethwei Championship (also known as WLC) is a
Lethwei
Lethwei ( my, လက်ဝှေ့; IPA: ) or Burmese boxing, is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world,
*
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* a ...
promotion based in
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
,
Myanmar
Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John C. Wells, Joh ...
.
The promotion brought to the millennia-old Burmese martial of Lethwei to
UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Pass is an American subscription-based video streaming service owned by the UFC's parent company, Zuffa, that launched in December 2013.
History
Fight Pass showcases live and on-demand mixed martial arts, submission grappling, kickboxi ...
and showcased it to the world.
The WLC events combined the historic traditions of Lethwei with modern entertainment.
History
Formation
The success of
ONE Championship
ONE Championship (formerly ONE Fighting Championship) is a Singaporean combat sports promotion. Founded on 14 July 2011 by entrepreneur Chatri Sityodtong and former ESPN Star Sports senior executive Victor Cui, its events have featured mixed ...
's
mixed martial arts
Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, inc ...
events in Myanmar caught the eye of
Zaykabar Company
Zaykabar Company Limited ( my, ဇေကမ္ဘာကုမ္ပဏီ; also spelt Zay Gabar or Zay Ka Bar) is a major Burmese conglomerate with interests in construction and telecommunications. The company was founded by Khin Shwe in 1990.
Z ...
Vice-Chairman Zay Thiha, who decided to bring world-class Lethwei events the world.
The businessman started Lekkha Moun Co in 2015 and the World Lethwei Championship was officially founded in August 2017 by Zay Thiha and investors, as a subsidiary of Lekkha Moun Co.
Inaugural event
In 2017, WLC signed Myanmar's top Lethwei fighters
Tun Tun Min
Tun Tun Min ( my, ထွန်းထွန်းမင်း; born 4 October 1992) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and former Openweight Lethwei World Champion of Mon descent. He is the youngest fighter to ever win the Lethwei Golden Belt, obtain ...
&
Too Too
Too Too ( my, တူးတူး) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and who competes in the World Lethwei Championship. He is former the WLC Middleweight World champion and is undefeated under traditional Lethwei rules, holding the 75 kg Le ...
.
The first WLC event, titled
WLC 1: The Great Beginning, was held on 3 March 2017 at Mingalardon Event Zone in
Mingaladon Township
Mingaladon Township ( my, မင်္ဂလာဒုံ မြို့နယ် ) is located in the northernmost part of Yangon, Myanmar. The township comprises 31 wards, and shares borders with Hmawbi Township in the north, North Okkalapa Towns ...
, Yangon, Myanmar.
Signing Dave Leduc
In March 2019, the promotion announced that it had signed Lethwei superstar
Dave Leduc
Dave Leduc (born 13 December 1991) is a Canadian Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship, where he is the former WLC Cruiserweight World Champion. He is also the undefeated Openweight Lethwei World Champion under traditi ...
to an exclusive contract.
The exclusive contract would made it impossible for him to defend his various titles from other promotions.
Leduc held a press conference at the
Karaweik Palace in
Yangon
Yangon ( my, ရန်ကုန်; ; ), formerly spelled as Rangoon, is the capital of the Yangon Region and the largest city of Myanmar (also known as Burma). Yangon served as the capital of Myanmar until 2006, when the military government ...
to announce that he was
vacating three of his four Lethwei world titles.
For Leduc's promotional debut at
WLC 9: King of Nine Limbs, the WLC signed former
UFC
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
welterweight
Seth Baczynski
Seth Baczynski (born October 26, 1981) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter currently competing in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division. A professional since 2006, Baczynski has formerly competed for the UFC, and ...
.
[
*
*
*
*
* ] Leduc knocked out Baczynski with punches to win the inaugural
WLC Cruiserweight Championship.
[
* ] The event received a significant viewership success on
UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Pass is an American subscription-based video streaming service owned by the UFC's parent company, Zuffa, that launched in December 2013.
History
Fight Pass showcases live and on-demand mixed martial arts, submission grappling, kickboxi ...
and won multiple awards in Asia such as the ''2019 Best Sport Program'' at
The Asian Academy Awards.
Leduc received a $50,000 bonus for his performance and marketing efforts.
International expansion
In October 2019, while on
The Joe Rogan Experience
''The Joe Rogan Experience'' is a podcast hosted by American comedian, presenter, and UFC color commentator Joe Rogan. It launched on December 24, 2009, on YouTube by Rogan and comedian Brian Redban, who was its sole co-host and producer until ...
podcast,
Dave Leduc
Dave Leduc (born 13 December 1991) is a Canadian Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship, where he is the former WLC Cruiserweight World Champion. He is also the undefeated Openweight Lethwei World Champion under traditi ...
announced that the organization had plans to host an historical event in the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
.
At the pre-fight press conference for
WLC 11: Battlebones, WLC executive director Sein Phyo Hlaing revealed plans to expand globally in 2020,
beginning with
Cambodia
Cambodia (; also Kampuchea ; km, កម្ពុជា, UNGEGN: ), officially the Kingdom of Cambodia, is a country located in the southern portion of the Indochinese Peninsula in Southeast Asia, spanning an area of , bordered by Thailand t ...
,
Thailand
Thailand ( ), historically known as Siam () and officially the Kingdom of Thailand, is a country in Southeast Asia, located at the centre of the Indochinese Peninsula, spanning , with a population of almost 70 million. The country is bo ...
,
Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...
and the United States.
As the promotion expands internationally, it plans to sign even more free-agents with recognizable names to compete in Lethwei.
ONE Championship partnership
In 2017, showed interest in co-promoting events in order to expand globally and there was rumours the organization could co-promote with the US-based
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship
Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship (BKFC) is an American bare-knuckle boxing promotion based in Philadelphia. BKFC is the first promotion to hold an official state-sanctioned and commissioned bare-knuckle boxing event in the United States since 1 ...
(BKFC).
However, the WLC officially entered into a partnership to share fighters with the mixed martial arts promotion
ONE Championship
ONE Championship (formerly ONE Fighting Championship) is a Singaporean combat sports promotion. Founded on 14 July 2011 by entrepreneur Chatri Sityodtong and former ESPN Star Sports senior executive Victor Cui, its events have featured mixed ...
.
Both parties agreed on sending athletes to fight in each other's organization.
On June 30, 2017, in a collaboration between
ONE and WLC, the organizations held a Lethwei
dark match
Professional wrestling has accrued a considerable amount of jargon throughout its existence. Much of it stems from the industry's origins in the days of carnivals and circuses. In the past, professional wrestlers used such terms in the presence ...
at
ONE Championship: Light of a Nation, a contest between Soe Htet Oo and
Thway Thit Win Hlaing
Thway Thit Win Hlaing ( my, သွေးသစ်ဝင်းလှိုင်) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and current openweight Lethwei world Champion. He is known as counter fighter relying on counters rather than straight offence.
Leth ...
. Soe Htet Oo would end up losing a decision according to
WLC point system where a winner must be chosen by judges decision if the fight goes there is no stoppage. As of 2022, there has been rumours of WLC Champion
Dave Leduc
Dave Leduc (born 13 December 1991) is a Canadian Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship, where he is the former WLC Cruiserweight World Champion. He is also the undefeated Openweight Lethwei World Champion under traditi ...
crossing over to ONE Championship under Lethwei rules.
Women division
Cambodia's Nou Srey Pov became the first female winner in World Lethwei Championship, defeating Shwe Sin Min and Shwe Nadi in 2018.
In 2019, WLC announced it will commit to the female Lethwei division with a dedicated female match at every event. It held its first female fight after the announcement featuring
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...
's Souris Manfredi and Eh Yanut from Cambodia at
WLC 9: King of Nine Limbs on 2 August in Mandalay, Myanmar. Manfredi became the first winner of the newly created women’s division by defeating Yanut.
Broadcast
Myanmar
Sky Net
SKYNET Direct to Home (DTH) is a Satellite television pay TV operator provided nationwide in Myanmar by Shwe Than Lwin Media Co.,Ltd. It was launched in November 2010. Sky Net broadcasts a total 80 channels via Apstar 7 satellite. It also provi ...
was the first television channel to broadcast the WLC events live in Myanmar and were then delayed telecast in over 40 countries worldwide.
In 2018, WLC signed a broadcasting deal with international broadcaster
Canal+
Canal+ (Canal Plus, , meaning 'Channel Plus'; sometimes abbreviated C+ or Canal) is a French premium television channel launched in 1984. It is 100% owned by the Groupe Canal+, which in turn is owned by Vivendi. The channel broadcasts several ki ...
for exclusive broadcasting rights in Myanmar.
Outside Myanmar
The end of 2018, the WLC marked Lethwei history by signing a deal with the
Ultimate Fighting Championship
The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...
and having its first Lethwei event broadcast live on
UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Pass is an American subscription-based video streaming service owned by the UFC's parent company, Zuffa, that launched in December 2013.
History
Fight Pass showcases live and on-demand mixed martial arts, submission grappling, kickboxi ...
.
World Lethwei Championship is also available in over 100 countries through broadcast deals with
Fight Network
Fight Network is a Canadian English language Category B specialty channel owned by Anthem Sports & Entertainment. The network broadcasts programming related to combat sports, including mixed martial arts, boxing, kickboxing, and professional wre ...
,
Arena Sport
Arena Sport is a regional pay television sports network. It consists of ten television channels and is coverage area includes Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, Kosovo, Montenegro, North Macedonia, Serbia and Slovenia.
Localised feeds Serbia
Are ...
,
Fox Sports
Fox Sports is the brand name for a number of sports channels, broadcast divisions, programming, and other media around the world.
The ''Fox Sports'' name has since been used for other sports media assets. These assets are held mainly by the Fo ...
,
Star Sports Star Sports refers to several current or former Asian sports networks owned by The Walt Disney Company:
* Star Sports (East Asian TV channel)
* Star Sports (Indian TV network)
* Fox Sports (Southeast Asian TV network)
Fox Sports (formerly ESPN ...
,
Bayon Television
Bayon Television (Bayon TV; km, ទូរទស្សន៍បាយ័ន) is a Cambodian free-to-air television network. Bayon TV broadcasts from 06:00 to midnight.
History
It was launched in 1998 by Hun Mana, oldest daughter of prime minist ...
, Titan Channel, Sport Extra and
StarTimes
StarTimes is a Chinese electronics and media company with strong presence in Sub-Saharan Africa.
StarTimes offers digital terrestrial television and satellite television services to consumers, and provides technologies to countries and broadcas ...
.
Sponsorship
*
Fuso
*
AGD Bank AGD may refer to:
* AGD Interactive, a non-profit software company
* Academy of General Dentistry
*Association for Genome Diagnostics
* Airgun Designs, a manufacturer of paintball equipment
* Agarabi language
* ''The Ambiguously Gay Duo'', an animat ...
*
UFC Fight Pass
UFC Fight Pass is an American subscription-based video streaming service owned by the UFC's parent company, Zuffa, that launched in December 2013.
History
Fight Pass showcases live and on-demand mixed martial arts, submission grappling, kickboxi ...
*
Canal+
Canal+ (Canal Plus, , meaning 'Channel Plus'; sometimes abbreviated C+ or Canal) is a French premium television channel launched in 1984. It is 100% owned by the Groupe Canal+, which in turn is owned by Vivendi. The channel broadcasts several ki ...
*
SPEED Energy Drink
*
5BB Broadband
* Max Myanmar Group and Consumer Goods Myanmar Co.
* Fightbro
*
Sogo Plastics
Events
Champions
World Champions
Myanmar National Champion
World championship history
Cruiserweight Championship
:''Weight limit: to ''
Middleweight Championship
:''Weight limit: to ''
Light Middleweight Championship
:''Weight limit: to''
Light Welterweight Championship
:''Weight limit: to ''
Women's Bantamweight Championship
:''Weight limit: to ''
Rules
The WLC uses the
modern Lethwei rules also known as tournament rules first established in 1996 by the Myanmar Lethwei Federation.
Rounds
Each bout can be booked as a 3, 4 or 5 round fight with 3 minutes per round and a 2-minute break in between rounds. Championship bouts are 5 round fights with 3 minutes per round and a 2-minute break between rounds.
Judging
In the event that a bout goes the distance, it will go to the judges decision. The 3 judges will score the bout based on number of strikes per round. Fighters have a maximum of 3 knockdowns per round and 4 knockdowns in the entire fight before the fight is ruled a knockout.
Weight classes
Awards
* Lethwei World
** 2019 Lethwei Promotion of the year
** 2019 Event of the Year
*Spia Asia Awards
** 2019 Best Sport Tourism Destination Campaign of the Year - Bronze
*
Asian Academy Awards
** 2019 Best Sport Program - National Winner
Notable fighters
*
Tun Tun Min
Tun Tun Min ( my, ထွန်းထွန်းမင်း; born 4 October 1992) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and former Openweight Lethwei World Champion of Mon descent. He is the youngest fighter to ever win the Lethwei Golden Belt, obtain ...
*
Dave Leduc
Dave Leduc (born 13 December 1991) is a Canadian Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship, where he is the former WLC Cruiserweight World Champion. He is also the undefeated Openweight Lethwei World Champion under traditi ...
*
Too Too
Too Too ( my, တူးတူး) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and who competes in the World Lethwei Championship. He is former the WLC Middleweight World champion and is undefeated under traditional Lethwei rules, holding the 75 kg Le ...
*
Soe Lin Oo
Soe Lin Oo ( my, စိုးလင်းဦး) (born December 4, 1991) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter currently competing in the Welterweight division of the World Lethwei Championship. He is the former Lethwei Golden Belt 60 kg Champio ...
*
Mite Yine
Mite Yine ( my, မိုက်ရိုင်း; born April 26, 1992) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship's Featherweight division. He is a former Lethwei Golden Belt champion, having won the title in ...
*
Saw Ba Oo
Saw Ba Oo ( my, စောဘဦး) is a Burmese Lethwei fighter and mixed martial artist. He is signed to the World Lethwei Championship and ONE Championship's Lightweight division.
Lethwei record
, - style="background:#c5d2ea;"
, 2019-03-12 ...
*
Sasha Moisa
Sasha Moisa (Ukrainian: Саша Мойса; born September 10, 1994) is a Ukrainian Muay Thai and Lethwei fighter currently signed to ONE Championship and World Lethwei Championship. He is the current WMC Super welterweight World Champion in Mu ...
*
Artur Saladiak
Artur Saładiak (born March 15, 1991) is a Polish Muay Thai kickboxer and Lethwei fighter who competes in Glory and World Lethwei Championship. He is a former WLC Light Middleweight World Champion.
Muay Thai & kickboxing career
Fighting ou ...
*
Naimjon Tuhtaboyev
Naimjon Tuhtaboyev (Uzbek language, Uzbek: Naimjon To'xtaboyev; born 29 January 1993) is an Uzbekistan, Uzbek Lethwei and Muay Thai fighter who currently competes in the World Lethwei Championship (WLC), where he is the reigning World Lethwei Cha ...
*
Nguyễn Trần Duy Nhất
Nguyễn Trần Duy Nhất (born March 21, 1989) is a Vietnamese professional Muay Thai, Kun Khmer and Lethwei fighter.
Duy Nhất is a five-time World Muaythai Federation, WMF Muay Thai world champion and four-time Southeast Asian Games, SEA G ...
*
Umar Semata
Umar Semata (born 20 May 1987) is a Ugandan middleweight and super middleweight Muay Thai fighter and the former World Boxing Council Muay Thai Interim Super Middleweight Champion, a title he has held since 14 June 2013.
Biography Early car ...
*
Seth Baczynski
Seth Baczynski (born October 26, 1981) is an American professional mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter currently competing in the Middleweight (MMA), Middleweight division. A professional since 2006, Baczynski has formerly competed for the UFC, and ...
See also
*
Myanmar Traditional Lethwei Federation
The Myanmar Traditional Lethwei Federation (MTLF) ( my, မြန်မာနိုင်ငံရိုးရာလက်ဝှေ့အဖွဲ့ချုပ်) is one of two major organizations which sanctions professional Lethwei bouts wo ...
*
List of Lethwei fighters
This is a list of notable athletes and well-known Lethwei practitioners who competed, sorted by area of place of birth.
Myanmar
* Tun Tun Min
* Saw Nga Man
* Lone Chaw
* Shwe Sai
* Too Too
* Tun Lwin Moe
* Soe Lin Oo
* Mite Yine
* Saw ...
References
External links
*
WLC Official Website
WLC YouTube channel
{{Sports governing bodies in Myanmar
World Lethwei Championship
Lethwei organizations
Kickboxing organizations
Sport in Myanmar
Sports organizations established in 2015
2015 establishments in Myanmar