The Thai Mayweather is 51-0, but is he any Good?

On Wednesday, Aug. 29, Wanheng Menayothin (aka Chayaphon Moonsri) successfully defended his WBC world minimumweight title with a 12-round unanimous decision over Pedro Taduran, a 21-year-old Filipino southpaw who entered the contest with a record of 12-1. The bout was held in the Thai province of Nakhon Sawan.

This was Menayothin’s 10^th successful title defense. Of greater note, it was his 51^st victory without a loss, surpassing Floyd Mayweather Jr. who surpassed Rocky Marciano’s iconic 49-0 at the expense of novice Conor McGregor last year.

Newspaper reporters have come to reference Menayothin as the Thai Mayweather, but this is quite a stretch. Granted, 51 straight wins without a loss isn’t chopped liver, but Menayothin’s “strength of schedule” is sorely lacking. In the aggregate, his opponents are 600-434-68, a winning percentage of 58 percent. His opponents in title matches are collectively 24-20-5 since he fought them, which one can interpret two ways; either they were never the same after Menayothin gave them a hiding or they were never really that good to begin with.

Menayothin competes in the 105-pound weight class. It is the lowest division in the sport, two rungs below flyweight, one of the eight classic weight divisions. There are now 17 weight classes, making it easier for a boxer to win a title and easier for him to carve out a statistically impressive career. What’s interesting is that none of the other three major sanctioning bodies rank Menayothin in the top 15, which tells us more about them than about him. Another Thai fighter, Knockout CP Freshmart (aka Thammanoon Niyomtrong) holds the WBA version of the 105-pound title. A fight between them would be a huge event in Thailand, but by all indications they are unlikely to fight anytime soon.

In common with Mayweather, Menayothin doesn’t pack a big punch. Only 18 of his wins have come by stoppage. The flip side is that he’s very durable. He’s engaged in 23 fights slated for 12 rounds, 13 of which went the full distance. All of those fights were staged in Thailand.

Scottish boxing historian Matt McGrain, an authority on the sport’s little men, has written that Menayothin is best understood as a regional champion, rather than a true world champion. “(He) has feasted on the WBC sanctioned no-hopers, regional titlists, professional losers and payday journeymen,” wrote McGrain after Menayothin advanced to 50-0. “He beat some good fighters, but never a very good fighter.”

Over the years, Thailand has produced some outstanding fighters, many of whom first earned their spurs in the national sport of Muay Thai. The great Khaosai Galaxy was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 1999. Sriskat Sor Rungvisai, the reigning WBC 115-pound champion, may someday join him there. (Sor Rungvisai risks his title against Mexico’s seemingly overmatched Iran Diaz in Thailand on Oct. 6.)

As it now stands, Menayothin has a very, very slim chance of going to Cooperstown some day as he isn’t getting any younger. He turns 33 in October which is fine for a heavyweight without much wear on his tires, but old for a man in his weight class.

As boxing writer Carlos Toro notes, another Thai fighter, 24-year-old bantamweight Petch Sor Chitpattana, is creeping up on Marciano/Mayweather/Menayothin. Sor Chitpattana is 47-0 and he too is a mystery fighter.

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