Changpeuk Kiatsonglit
Encyclopedia
Changpuek "Crazy Elephant" Kiatsongrit is a retired Thai Muay Thai
kickboxer. He is credited as being one of the first Muay Thai fighters to go abroad and fight other fighters of other martial arts styles, often stronger and heavier than himself, bringing to the world an understanding of the effectiveness of Muay Thai. Changpuek is a seven time world champion who has fought some of the world's best fighters at middleweight to heavyweight and has wins against world class fighters such as Rob Kaman
(x3), Rick Roufus
, Peter Smit
and Tosca Petridis
. He is currently a Muay Thai trainer based at the Sitpholek gym in Pattaya, Thailand
.
, where he would remain for more than sixteen years. Changpuek fought at the lower weights in his early years spent on the Bangkok circuit, weighing as little as 49 kg (108 lbs) on his Rajadamnern Stadium
debut.
After fighting for a number of years in Thailand Changpuek found it increasingly difficult to get fights domestically as his weight (70 kg) was not typical for a Thai where competitive bouts at tend to be at the lower weights. As a result he started to fight abroad facing the K.I.C.K.
world champion Rick Roufus
in a non title fight in Las Vegas,1988. Changpuek proved to be too wily for Roufus, despite being knocked down in the first and suffering a broken jaw, won via knockout in the fourth round due to the culmination of low kicks that the American fighter was unprepared for. In 1989 Changpuek faced another top class fighter in Rob Kaman (who unlike Roufus who was starting out, was near the peak of his powers). Changpuek won the first match of four between the two by decision in Paris setting the way for a rematch in Amsterdam the following year this time with the added bonus of the I.M.T.F. light heavyweight world title. Kaman gained his revenge in Amsterdam knocking out Changpuek in the last round of their match. The third match between the pair followed two months later with Changpuek taking a decision victory and the belt which Kaman had only just won.
After his trilogy of fights with Kaman, Changpuek would continue to fight some of the top light heavyweight fighters in the world between 1990 and 1992, losing one and winning one against Peter Smit, defeating the tough Luc Verheye by knockout
and decisioning Orlando Wiet. In this period he would lose and regain his I.M.T.F. world title and claim the first ever W.M.K. world belt. In 1993 Changpuek was invited to compete against some of the world's top heavyweight kickboxers at the inaugural K-1
world grand prix, losing to eventual winner Branko Cikatić
by knockout at the quarter final stage. Not put off by his K-1 debut he was invited back by the organization to take part in a world title fight - defeating Taiei Kin
over five rounds to claim the vacant U.K.F. belt.
1993 would continue to be a busy year for Changpuek, he fought on cards throughout the year in Japan picking up several victories as well as losing to legendary karateka Andy Hug
at the karate world cup. At the end of the year he fought in the K-2 Grand Prix '93 a tournament held by K-1
for light heavyweight fighters. As the smallest fighter at the event weighing only 75 kg, Changpuek faced Rob Kaman
in the fourth (and final) match of their quartet of fights, winning a grueling match by decision. A victory in the semi finals against Tasis Petridis meant a final match against future x4 K-1
world champion Ernesto Hoost
. Weary from his past encounters Changpuek managed to push Hoost into an extra round only to lose eventually via a head kick knockout
.
Although Changpuek would never again quite hit the peak of his success of the early nineties, he fought a number more times with the K-1
organization, the highlight being a victory against Nobuaki Kakuda
to claim the W.M.T.C. cruiserweight world title and wins against the likes of Kakuda were tempered by defeats against Michael Thompson, Ivan Hippolyte
and Manson Gibson
. Always willing to travel to fight Changpuek fought a number of fights in Europe
around the turn of the millenium winning the W.K.U. world title in 2001 but found victories harder to come by as the toll of career of 300+ fights set in and he retired around 2006 aged 40. He currently resides in Pattaya, Thailand
where he is the father of two children and is a Muay Thai coach. His nephew, Kongsak Sithboonmee, was named Thailand's top Muay Thai boxer in April 2011.
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...
kickboxer. He is credited as being one of the first Muay Thai fighters to go abroad and fight other fighters of other martial arts styles, often stronger and heavier than himself, bringing to the world an understanding of the effectiveness of Muay Thai. Changpuek is a seven time world champion who has fought some of the world's best fighters at middleweight to heavyweight and has wins against world class fighters such as Rob Kaman
Rob Kaman
Rob "The Dutchman" Kaman is a Dutch retired 9 time kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion considered by many as the greatest kickboxer of all time. Often called "Mr. Low Kick" because of his feared low kicks which he used to set up his devastating offensive attacks.- Biography :In his early days...
(x3), Rick Roufus
Rick Roufus
Rick Roufus is an American kickboxer, fighting out of The MMA Lab in Phoenix, Arizona. He is one of the most famous kickboxers in the United States, and has also competed in boxing and mixed martial arts...
, Peter Smit
Peter Smit
Peter "The Hurricane" Smit was a Dutch martial artist who mastered such different fight disciplines as kyokushin karate, kickboxing and Muay Thai....
and Tosca Petridis
Tosca Petridis
Tosca Petridis is a Greek-Australian former Kickboxer and Boxer.He was born in Melbourne, Australia, however is of Greek ethnicity...
. He is currently a Muay Thai trainer based at the Sitpholek gym in Pattaya, Thailand
Pattaya
Pattaya is a city in Thailand, located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 165 km southeast of Bangkok located within but not part of Amphoe Bang Lamung in the province of Chonburi....
.
Biography/Career
Changpuek was born and raised in a small village some 30 km of the town of Prakhonchai, Buriram in northeastern Thailand, one of seven children. As a young child he showed a great propensity towards fighting and was the leader of a local gang while still at school. Thankfully, a young Changpuek put his aggressive streak to better use as he became attracted to Muay Thai from watching local fighters and started training at home alongside his brothers under the tutelage of their father. He had his first fight at 14 and by 18 had left home to join the Kiatsongrit Gym in BangkokBangkok
Bangkok is the capital and largest urban area city in Thailand. It is known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon or simply Krung Thep , meaning "city of angels." The full name of Bangkok is Krung Thep Mahanakhon Amon Rattanakosin Mahintharayutthaya Mahadilok Phop Noppharat Ratchathani Burirom...
, where he would remain for more than sixteen years. Changpuek fought at the lower weights in his early years spent on the Bangkok circuit, weighing as little as 49 kg (108 lbs) on his Rajadamnern Stadium
Rajadamnern Stadium
Rajadamnern Boxing Stadium or, in Thai, Sanam Muay Rajadamnern , is an indoor sporting arena located in Bangkok, Thailand. Along with Lumpinee Stadium, the Rajadamnern is one of the two main stadiums for modern Muay Thai...
debut.
After fighting for a number of years in Thailand Changpuek found it increasingly difficult to get fights domestically as his weight (70 kg) was not typical for a Thai where competitive bouts at tend to be at the lower weights. As a result he started to fight abroad facing the K.I.C.K.
Karate International Council of Kickboxing
The Karate International Council of Kickboxing is a sanctioning body that regulates kickboxing matches. It is considered among the more prestigious organizations that sanction professional kickboxing.-Early years:...
world champion Rick Roufus
Rick Roufus
Rick Roufus is an American kickboxer, fighting out of The MMA Lab in Phoenix, Arizona. He is one of the most famous kickboxers in the United States, and has also competed in boxing and mixed martial arts...
in a non title fight in Las Vegas,1988. Changpuek proved to be too wily for Roufus, despite being knocked down in the first and suffering a broken jaw, won via knockout in the fourth round due to the culmination of low kicks that the American fighter was unprepared for. In 1989 Changpuek faced another top class fighter in Rob Kaman (who unlike Roufus who was starting out, was near the peak of his powers). Changpuek won the first match of four between the two by decision in Paris setting the way for a rematch in Amsterdam the following year this time with the added bonus of the I.M.T.F. light heavyweight world title. Kaman gained his revenge in Amsterdam knocking out Changpuek in the last round of their match. The third match between the pair followed two months later with Changpuek taking a decision victory and the belt which Kaman had only just won.
After his trilogy of fights with Kaman, Changpuek would continue to fight some of the top light heavyweight fighters in the world between 1990 and 1992, losing one and winning one against Peter Smit, defeating the tough Luc Verheye by knockout
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
and decisioning Orlando Wiet. In this period he would lose and regain his I.M.T.F. world title and claim the first ever W.M.K. world belt. In 1993 Changpuek was invited to compete against some of the world's top heavyweight kickboxers at the inaugural K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
world grand prix, losing to eventual winner Branko Cikatić
Branko Cikatic
Branko "The Croatian Tiger" Cikatić is a Croatian former heavyweight kickboxer, the first Croatian born fighter to achieve international success...
by knockout at the quarter final stage. Not put off by his K-1 debut he was invited back by the organization to take part in a world title fight - defeating Taiei Kin
Taiei Kin
Kin Taiei is a Korean-Japanese light heavyweight karateka, kickboxer and mixed martial artist competing in K-1 and DREAM. He's also a karate instructor and a trainer for professional fighters...
over five rounds to claim the vacant U.K.F. belt.
1993 would continue to be a busy year for Changpuek, he fought on cards throughout the year in Japan picking up several victories as well as losing to legendary karateka Andy Hug
Andy Hug
Andy Hug was a Swiss Seidokaikan and Kyokushin karateka and kickboxer from Wohlen. Hug was the K-1 World Grand Prix 1996 champion and runner up in 1997 and 1998.-Biography and career:...
at the karate world cup. At the end of the year he fought in the K-2 Grand Prix '93 a tournament held by K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
for light heavyweight fighters. As the smallest fighter at the event weighing only 75 kg, Changpuek faced Rob Kaman
Rob Kaman
Rob "The Dutchman" Kaman is a Dutch retired 9 time kickboxing and Muay Thai world champion considered by many as the greatest kickboxer of all time. Often called "Mr. Low Kick" because of his feared low kicks which he used to set up his devastating offensive attacks.- Biography :In his early days...
in the fourth (and final) match of their quartet of fights, winning a grueling match by decision. A victory in the semi finals against Tasis Petridis meant a final match against future x4 K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
world champion Ernesto Hoost
Ernesto Hoost
Ernesto Fritz "Mr. Perfect" Hoost is a Dutch former kickboxer and four-time K-1 World Champion. He made his debut in 1993 at the K-1 World Grand Prix 1993, where he came just one win short of the world title...
. Weary from his past encounters Changpuek managed to push Hoost into an extra round only to lose eventually via a head kick knockout
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
.
Although Changpuek would never again quite hit the peak of his success of the early nineties, he fought a number more times with the K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
organization, the highlight being a victory against Nobuaki Kakuda
Nobuaki Kakuda
is a Japanese Seidokaikan Karateka.-Career:Kakuda is famous for his first punch knockout win over German mixed martial artist Mavrick at 0:56 seconds in the K-1 Fields Europe GP 2005 as well as being the only K-1 fighter to lose to Akebono, a former Sumo wrestler whose long losing streak has made...
to claim the W.M.T.C. cruiserweight world title and wins against the likes of Kakuda were tempered by defeats against Michael Thompson, Ivan Hippolyte
Ivan Hippolyte
Ivan "The Hydro" Hippolyte is a Dutch-Surinamese former kickboxer and Muay Thai World champion. He is currently a martial arts coach at the Vos Gym in Amsterdam, Netherlands, the same gym he used to fight out of during his active career...
and Manson Gibson
Manson Gibson
Manson "The Master Blaster" Gibson is a retired American kickboxer and a nine time Muay Thai and kickboxing world champion. He was known for his vicious use of spinning techniques and awkward style and was sometimes referred to as the "Thai Killer"...
. Always willing to travel to fight Changpuek fought a number of fights in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
around the turn of the millenium winning the W.K.U. world title in 2001 but found victories harder to come by as the toll of career of 300+ fights set in and he retired around 2006 aged 40. He currently resides in Pattaya, Thailand
Pattaya
Pattaya is a city in Thailand, located on the east coast of the Gulf of Thailand, about 165 km southeast of Bangkok located within but not part of Amphoe Bang Lamung in the province of Chonburi....
where he is the father of two children and is a Muay Thai coach. His nephew, Kongsak Sithboonmee, was named Thailand's top Muay Thai boxer in April 2011.
Titles
- 2001 W.K.U. cruiserweight world champion
- 1996 W.M.T.C. cruiserweight world champion -86 kg
- 1993 K-2 Grand Prix runner up -79 kg
- 1993-94 U.K.F. light heavyweight world champion -79 kg (0 title defences)
- 1992 I.M.T.F. light heavyweight world champion -79 kg (1st title defence)
- 1991 W.M.K. heavyweight world champion
- 1990 I.M.T.F light heavyweight world champion -79 kg (retained title after losing it the same year)
- 1990 I.M.T.F light heavyweight world champion -79 kg
Record
| Kickboxing record | |
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Legend: |
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