Yodsanklai Fairtex; a former three-time Lumpinee Stadium champion, has officially announced his retirement from the sport of Muay Thai.
On Sunday, June 11, “Yod” took to Facebook to announce the end of his illustrious 24-year career, in a poignant statement where the 31-year-old spoke about his debilitating knee injury.
Yodsanklai’s official statement was translated into English by Australian website FightMag.
“Hello everyone, my friends, brothers, sisters and fan club. I [want to] tell everyone now Yodsanklai Fairtex is officially hanging up the gloves,” Yodsanklai opened.
He went on to say: “I made a break for over a year after an operation on my knee. After I came back to training and fighting I feel my body isn’t the same.”
“I’m constantly in pain even at training. I can’t stand it anymore.”
The Thai’s continuing knee problems forced him to take a considerable amount of time off between October 2015 and February 2017. Upon his return, the Lumpinee legend defeated Dzhabar Askerov.
Yodsanklai’s final appearances inside the ring took place in Sanya, China on May 14, where he defeated Cedric Manhoef and Soichiro Miyakoshi at Kunlun Fight 61 to win the -70kg tournament group 8 qualifying tournament.
One of the biggest disappointments for thai boxing fans is that the rumoured ‘super-fight’ against Buakaw Banchamek; which was already in doubt, has further drifted into the pits of obscurity. The WMC middleweight champion was speculated to face Buakaw in 2017.