The Rivalry That Made Lumpinee Stand Up Is Back And Seksan Is Ready To Settle It

Twelve years is a long time to sit with an unfinished story. Seksan Or Kwanmuang is done waiting.

The four-time Muay Thai World Champion returns to action at ONE Friday Fights 147 this Friday, March 20, at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, where he collides with fellow legend Pakorn PK Saenchai in the bantamweight Muay Thai rubber match the sport has been owed since 2014.

The two met twice in rapid succession that year, producing back-to-back five-round classics that had the entire stadium on its feet on both occasions. Seksan took the first decision in April. Pakorn leveled the series a month later. Then their careers diverged, and the trilogy seemed destined to remain unwritten.

“After the second fight, I thought we’d never cross paths again because our careers were heading in different directions,” Seksan said. “So, when the offer came, I accepted immediately because I knew this fight would be an absolute banger.”

The 37-year-old arrives at this moment carrying three consecutive defeats — a losing streak without precedent in his 203-78 career. For most fighters that would be cause for reflection. For Seksan, it is cause for adjustment.

His body, he admits, is starting to feel the accumulated weight of a decade fighting at maximum output. The response is not to soften. It is to sharpen.

“I think my body is just starting to show its age,” he said. “I’ve been fighting in this all-out aggressive style for over 10 years now. Moving forward, I’m going to focus more on my defense, but don’t expect me to change my style. Technical boxing just isn’t my thing.”

What he is bringing instead is a full arsenal of unorthodox weapons deployed whenever the timing is right against one of the most defensively intelligent fighters in the sport.

He is under no illusions about who he is facing. Pakorn’s fight IQ is formidable, his technical depth elite. But Seksan has seen what happens when the two of them share a ring. Tactics tend to dissolve into something rawer.

“Pakorn is a very well-rounded fighter with a high fight IQ,” he said. “He could have played it safe and outpointed me before, but he chose to stand and trade. I really respect his heart for being brave enough to scrap with me like that.”

With three rounds, small gloves, and 12 years of anticipation behind them, Seksan knows exactly what Friday night will look like.

“This third fight is going to be even crazier because we’re such a perfect match. I’m confident the action will be so intense the fans will be on their feet again.”