#134 Wangchannoi Sor. Palangchai 3 - His Powerful, Advancing Counter Fighting (74 min) (Patreon)

I'm very excited to be adding more of Wangchannoi to the MTL. He has 2 entries already (go back and watch those, as they will help a great deal in getting the most out of this one) and they are 2 of our most loved/popular entries. His style is beautiful, powerful Femeu with good hands, and he's scary. Wangchannoi was Fighter of the Year in 1993 and at that point had beat every Fighter of the Year since 1983 - 1992, with the exception of 1991 (Samson Isaan) because that wasn't his weight class. He was Lumpinee Champion at 108 lbs and 4x Lumpinee Champion at 122 lb, arguably the most competitive weight class in the Golden Age. And, having him in the Library is a lot of what the Muay Thai Library is about. He was the legend killer, one of the most feared fighters of the Golden Age, but his fighting style and technique is only at the edges of many people's awareness. There are few of his fights out there on video, but in the Library we dive down into what he actually was doing as a fighter, how he pulled off some of the greatest wins in Muay Thai history.

What to Look Out For:

1) Stepping on Each Strike: Wangchannoi really focused on this aspect in his first session in the Muay Thai Library, but it's fundamental to his style so it definitely appears in every lesson. However, this one allows us to expand upon the stepping to build on the purpose, which is generating power and applying pressure, which leads to:

2) Pulsing/ "Depth-Charge": In order to be a dern fighter, the forward fighter, you have to have good defense. Wangchannoi's defense is made up of tight parries (he keeps his guard high and close to his face for punches), blocks and disbalances. As an Orthodox fighter, anything from your opponent's left side is your open side, so that's the most important thing to block. Wangchannoi gets inside an opponent's power side and slams his lead guard into their shoulder or chest, off balancing and hurting them as he blocks. This is the "depth-charge." By rocking your opponent every time they hit you, you off-balance and disrupt their rhythm; he also pulses forward to apply pressure that keeps them active while retreating, which is both exhausting and forces them to bring out their weapons.

3) Forward Pressure as a Counter Fighter: Both Wangchannoi and Dieselnoi insist on making your opponent go first, to be jang-wa song, or a counter fighter. This is because if you strike and the opponent spoils it and counters you, you look like an ass. So just be the one making the opponent look bad, instead. As a forward fighter, however, getting a Femeu fighter who also wants to go second to go first can be tricky. That's why pressure is important. If you block well and intimidate with space, your opponent has to go first and you can draw out their weapons. You are "waiting," but it's not a passive waiting.

4) Samart's Teep: turn your hip and leg to the side (from the standing foot) to land your teep with the foot sideways. This is for added power, but also to make it hard to parry or catch. If you want to go second, your teep might be one of the only weapons you actively throw first, either to juggle your opponent (defense) or to back them up (offense), but in either case you don't want to be parried or caught.

5) Chat Jen: this phrase ชัดเจน is the opposite of "mua" มั่ว. It means to be clear, precise, crisp, obvious; "mua" is messy, cloudy, indistinct, muddy and excessive. Part of why Wangchannoi throws power on every strike is that his rhythm is pretty steady and relaxed. He uses to word slow (cha), but not in the sense of dragging, more in the sense of "gradual." It makes him very legible from a distance. Let your opponent blow scattershot at a target for little points and then off-balance and nail the bull's eye with your sniper shot.

6) Clinch Escape: Wangchannoi has a move that's kind of like a windmill blade slicing a cable. If your opponent gets a lock on your neck and there's any distance between you, he windmills his arm up and over, in front of the opponent, to chop the arms right off. It's pretty efficient.

7) Bag Work Role Play: some of the best "what is bagwork for?" instruction has come from Wangchannoi. For him, bagwork is about working on rhythm and timing; in our second session together he taught me what I call "ambient footwork," or how to move around when you aren't striking. In this session, he adds to this by having me imagine the bag in different styles and how I would deal with that. The bag is Muay Mat - my guard is high, I'm parrying and pivoting. The Bag is Femeu - I'm pressuring and cutting angles, checking kicks and scoring. The Bag is Muay Khao - stay relaxed, ning, slip the knees, pull to off balance and land a sniper shot to the bull's eye.

8) Sounds: I'm not sure this qualifies as a "what to look out for," but it doesn't fall short enough from it to not be mentioned: Wangchannoi's sound effects tell you a lot about how he feels his style. It's his energy, his particular relationship to what he's doing, something that's only him. He makes grunts and growls when he's charging, and little "beep beep" Road Runner sounds when he's swatting punches away. He pantomimes being kicked in the head and makes a Bugs Bunny "gackkk" sound and pretends to be knocked out and fall over. He pulls a scary face and goes, "eeeehhhhhrrrrrr" when I tell him he was scary. He knows. These sound effects are so instructive, as much as they are entertaining.

Other Sessions Referenced in my commentary: (these are the footnotes, principles to be found in other fighters)

#93 Wangchannoi Palangchai - Deadly Step Counter Fighting (70 min) - watch it here

#95 Wangchannoi Sor. Palangchai #2 - The Secret Powers of a Cool Heart (77 min) watch it here

#76 Dieselnoi Chor Thanasukarn 4 - How to Fight Tall (69 min) watch it here

#16 Thailand Pinsinchai 1 - Attacking Shell (62 min) watch it here

#11 Karuhat Sor. Supawan 2 - Float and Shock (82 min) watch it here

#34 Samart Payakaroon - Balance, Balance, Balance! (81 min) watch it here

#104 Yodkhunpon Sittraipum 4 - The Art of Shadowboxing (64 min) watch it here

#131 Panomtuanlek Hapalang - The Secret of Tidal Knees (100 min) watch it here

#45 Langsuan Panyutapum - Monster Muay Khao Training (66 min) watch it here

#129 Cherry Sor Wanich - Unbreakable Lock Muay Thai (50 min) watch it here

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Nopidej vs Wangchannoi, the year after Wangchannoi became Lumpinee Champion 122 lb

Wangchannoi vs Chamuakpet, the year Wangchannoi first became 122 lb Lumpinee Champion

Wangchannoi vs Samransak, and Jaroenthong vs Samart. At some point, Wangchannoi also trained at Muangsurin Gym (where Samransak fights out of, and where we heard Samart sometimes trained as well).

Some of Kevin's photos from the session, check out the entire photo album here. And follow his photography in his Facebook Group

If you enjoyed this session here are others to study in the Muay Thai Library along the same themes and heavy-handed punishing styles

#95 Wangchannoi Sor. Palangchai 2 - The Secret Powers of a Cool Heart (77 min) watch it here

The first session with one of the best fighters who ever lived was so good we went back right away and filmed a 2nd. This time his fighting style is put into more context, focus on angling off, the differences between boxing and Muay Thai & Wangchannoi's beautiful jumping knees.

#94 Wangchannoi Palangchai 1 - Deadly Step Counter Fighting (70 min) - watch it here

One of the all-time greats, 118 lb and 4x 122 lb Lumpinee Champion, 1993 Fighter of the Year Wangchannoi was one of the most feared fighters who ever fought, patrolling the Golden Age with fierce violence. In this session he teaches the keys to his aggressive, forward pressure counter fighting style.

#88 Samransak Muangsurin - Muay Maat Legend Keys to Powerful Hands (61 min) watch it here

Samransak was nothing if not thunderous as a fighter in the Golden Age. He threw with serious, heavy hands and just brutalized his opponents. He teaches the basics of his Muay Maat style, how he brought boxing into the ring to massive effect. One of the all time legends of the sport.

#75 Lakhin Wasantasit - Boxing & Muay Thai Organized Destruction (76 min) watch it here

Lakhin was a beast, to stand in front of him was to invite disaster. Perhaps no fighter of the Golden Age was more feared for his hands. In this session he shows just what made him so intimidating, and how he developed a style predicated on inflicting maximum damage.

#74 Samson Isaan 2 - Muay Khao & Western Boxing Excellence (59 min) watch it here

In 1991 there was no fighter more of a force than Samson Isaan, who took Fighter of the Year then. His relentless style combining Muay Maat punching aggression with Knee Fighting pressure and clinch made him a wrecking ball. In this session discover what made this little fighter so impossible to handle.

#41 Samson Isaan 1 - The Art of Dern Fighting (64 min) watch it here

To "dern" in Thai is to "walk", which means basically to just come forward no matter what, to create a relentlessness. Voted Fighter of the Year in 1991, Samson Isaan was one of the great Dern Fighters of the Golden Age, and in this session he shows his forward pulsing techniques which are meant to just overwhelm his opponent. Also a great session for pressure Southpaw fighters.

#130 Sagat Petchyindee #5 - The Coil and the Uppercut (70 min) watch it here

Sagat has got to be the most popular legend in the entire Library, and this session shows why. Incredibly precise in correction and full of that intensity which made him one of the most feared fighters of his era. Here he unlocks the secrets of his uppercut and the overall coiling that marked his renown, explosive style.

#69 Sagat Petchyindee 4 - Muay Maat Tigers & Snakes (67 min) watch it here

Sagat details his ferocious, hands-heavy style in this session, teaching perfect balance and very aggressive spacing. The secrets to his power, how everything flows out of his core and his organized stance are on full display. Nobody like him.

#60 Sagat Petchindee 3 - All the Strikes Tuned and Dangerous (101 min) watch it here

One of the great, legendary names of Thailand, Sagat Petchyindee the inspiration for the Street Fighter character, goes through his entire striking philosophy with lots of technical correction and fine tuning. See the secret to his creation of smooth, efficient, explosive power, and witness the amazing man himself.

#52 Krongsak Prakong-Boranrat - That Shoving Energy (56 min) watch it here

Legendary Krongsak, a man who beat Sagat 3x, and fought Dieselnoi to a draw, gives a session that is all about the right fight energy in training. He places great importance on eye-contact, and making sure your strikes really finish, as well as focusing on the back foot in stance, the rudder of the boat.

#29 Pornsanae Sitmonchai - The Power of Hooks & Low Kicks (74 min) watch it here

A whole system of low kick and hook attacks is taught in this one session. Rajadamnren and 2x Lumpinee Champion Pornsanae is known for his brutal power fighting and this is how he gets it done. Cutting angles, lead arm control, invading space. Pornsanae teaches his philosophy.