“Best of Siam” Breakout Hit
Ring legends and old friends, former French fighter and WMC champion Jean-Charles Skarbowsky, Thai champion Krongsak Prakong-Boranrat, and Muaythai enthusiast Hakim Didda, have joined forces to throw a Muaythai gala worthy of the grand old days of French Muaythai!
Former champions, history makers for French Muaythai, joined ranks with the new generation of stars, making the night one well worth remembering. In attendance were many of the pioneer fighters of the WMC: Roger Paschy, the father of French Muaythai, trailblazers like Omar Benamar, Sam Berrandou and Kouider Abdelmoumeni, stars of the 80’s and 90’s such as Jo Prestia, Guillaume Kerner, Danny Bill, Stéphane Nikiéma, Jaid Seddak, Fabrice Allouche, Aurélien Duarte, and the champions of the past decade up till today: Farid Villaume, Djamel Yacouben, Kamel Jemel, Totof, Fabio Pinca, Abdellah Mabel, and Patrice Quarteron. Everyone came together for France! French celebrities were also in the audience, actors like Bruno Putzulu, Gérard Lanvin and Gérard Darmon, just to name a few…
The gala’s atmosphere was electric, with Thai round girls in traditional costumes, an incredible line-up and close to 4,000 spectators in the audience! While the fights were balanced, it must be said that Thailand showed why it is still number one.
The Fight Card:
ANNE-LAURE GAUDRY VS DIWARA HALIMATOU – 68 Kg
The female fight of the night saw a points win by Anne-Laure Gaudry.
BOBO SACKO VS AMADOU BA – 67 Kg
BoboSacko is a rising star, precise and technically brilliant. He dominated the fight and in the third round, won by KO.
YOHAN LIDON VS DERNCHONLEK SOR SOR NIYOM – 75 Kg
Yohan “Lumberjack” Lidon put a lot of pressure on his Thai opponent at first, with some heavy hitting punches. But Dernchonlek, fighting for the first time abroad, and a master of grappling, soon turned the tables with some well-placed knees, winning the fight with a points decision.
YOUSSEF BOUGHANEM VS AEKPRACHA MEENAYOTHIN – 71 Kg
The fight began in magnificent style, promising to be a real war between the French phenom and the redoubtable Thai WMC World Champion . Unfortunately for Youssef, in the second round his shoulder was dislocated, and despite his desire to keep going, the referee wisely stopped the match, giving Aekpracha the victory by RSCI. Aekpracha’s next international show stopper will be coming up in three weeks, when he fights in the Prince’s Cup, July 27th in Bangkok. He will be facing down Englishman Jordan Watson in the first fight of the Prince Cup semi-final…if Aekpracha missed a war in France, he is guaranteed one at Prince’s Cup!
HICHEM CHAIBI VS SUDSAKORN SOR KLINMEE – 70 Kg
Hichem Chaibi met Sudsakorn in the ring and fought valiantly. However, the powerful Thai won in a points decision after getting in several good throws on Hichem.
MEHDI ZATOUT VS WMC Superstar SEANCHAI SINBI GYM
The last fight of the night was truly splendid. Mehdi Zatout had the fearsome honour of facing down Thai master of the ring, Seanchai. Zatout, sharp as ever, proved himself more than equal to the challenge, even getting in a throw. However, it must be noted, Seanchai had fought the fight of a lifetime only one week before at Lumpinee Stadium, Bangkok, beating one of Thailand’s serious stars Penaik Sitnoomnoi. As king of the ring, always in top form, Seanchai can usually make short shrift of his opponents, but this time Zatout was able to keep up the pressure for the duration of the match. Finally, thanks to his excellent eye and exceptional technique, Seanchai won a points victory, and Mehdi Zatout won immense respect for his great performance against the phenomenal Seanchai!
Congratulations to Jean-Charles Scraboswsky, Krongsak Prakong-Boranrat and Hakim Didda for a great show, with many more to come. It looks as though French Muaythai is coming back to revive the old days of glory…this year France has already seen two great WMC World title fights, in addition to this fantastic show. The success of the night is a promising sign for the three organisers, and France is looking forward to the next event on the scale of “Best of Siam”!
Fight results:
Anne-Laure Gaudry wins vs. SaidaAtmani
BoboSacko wins vs. Amadou Ba by KO (R3)
MickaelPeynaud wins vs. VatsanaSedone by RSCI (R2)
Thong Tong wins vs. SofianeBougossa by points
Aekpracha wins vs. Youssef Boughanem by RSCI (R2)
DernChonlek wins vs.YohanLidon by points
Sudsakorn wins vs. HichemChaibi by points
Saenchai wins vs. Mehdi Zatout by points
Tags: Aekpracha, France, Hakim Didda, Jean-Charles Skarbowsky, Krongsak Prakong-Boranrat, Muaythai Gala, Prince Cup 2012, Seanchai
