Muay thai champion Buakaw Por Pramuk, who disappeared last week from training camp, surfaced in Bangkok this week and opened up his heart to the media in several TV interviews.
Buakaw, real name Mr. Sombat Banchamek, apologized to his many fans that had worried about him, but said that he left because of major problems with his training camp of 20 years, Por Pramuk. He said that he would not return to Por Pramuk but that he would continue boxing.
The champ said that the atmosphere in his gym had been bad since 2009. He had gotten injured which caused him embarrassment, especially when people accused him of being too lazy to spar with partners and not having discipline. Things reportedly started going sour when ownership of the gym was passed from Pramuk Rojanaton to his son Theerapat.
According to reports in The Daily News, a Black Fortuner Toyota with Prachuap Kiri Khan license plates and a boxing bumper sticker followed Buakaw to one of the interviews. The car drove around this studio two times with four passengers in black safari suits inside before leaving. An ominous sign.
Buakaw said this about the whole situation:
We have had the new owner of the gym now for two years, but still the problems remain. It might even have been worse than before, so I decided to leave without a word to anyone there. I did not consult about these problems with anyone. I spent 10 days with my trainer and stayed where I can be happy, seeing nobody, staying in a room. I insist that I do not have lady problems related to my actions. I have faced the mean words of some people saying that it was a damn headache to deal with me, but the truth is that I practiced every day and disciplined myself. I didn’t leave impulsively, but with a lot of consideration.
He denied a rumor that he would start his own gym, saying he had gotten an offer to do it but had not made a decision yet, because he was still a boxer for Por Pramuk gym. He insisted that his career was not over but that he wanted to think about things for a while:
I will contact the gym myself later in 2 or 3 days, but I may not return to the gym again. I still want to continue my career. However, if I have some time left on my contract with Por Pramuk and I cannot fight anywhere then I may just stay quiet for a while. There are many alternative choices for me. I think I have about one year on the contract left with them but there will be no problem for them, because I am truly injured and unable to fight especially for the next coming match in Pattaya on April 17.
A reporter asked Buakaw about his finances and a rumor about him owing Por Pramuk gym THB100 million. The fighter said that the rumor was absolutely not true and that if it was true he would be a millionaire by now. He said that actually it was Por Pramuk that owed him some money, but that was not the reason why he left the gym:
My performing fee agreement is 50-50 with the gym, which it is not a problem for me. The rumors that my BMW was THB8 million are not true. I have a second-hand BMW car and it was only THB1.3 million. I cannot even complete my installment payment on the car yet.
About whether he might reconcile and return to his gym if a sport authority middleman helped negotiate, the fighter said he did now want to say anything about that yet.
His longtime trainer and sparring partner Mr. Saichon Thammarong, who appeared with him in the interviews, reaffirmed that Buakaw had never been a bad boy or had lady problems. Mr. Saichon said that no boxers run away from their gym if they are happy. Buakaw had faced the mean words and pressure for years, he said.
A highlight video of Buakaw’s career is below.
Translated from The Daily News by Christal
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