A Fighter Profile: Phoe Thaw

A Fighter Profile: Phoe Thaw

By Daniel Gibbon

A knockout artists first fight on foreign soil.

The ONE Championship Myanmar featherweight tournament champion, Phoe Thaw (7-1) will make the 3000 kilometer trip from his home in Yangon to Shanghai, where he will face Indonesian kickboxer Victorio Senduk during the prelims of ONE Champion’s Legendary Quest event.

Phoe Thaw started his martial arts career as a Lethwei style fighter but has since started training in both Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Karate.

During his appearance in the Netflix series Fightworld, his trainer mentioned that some traditionalists looked down on him training new martial arts styles. This did not seem to bother either Thaw or his trainer because they were determined to become as well rounded as possible.

Thaw made his professional debut on the 18th July 2015, at ONE Championship 29 – Kingdom of warriors where he beat Kyal Sin Htoo in the first round after the doctor stopped Htoo from continuing.

Since making his professional debut Thaw has fought eight times, all of which have come under the ONE Championship banner.
He earned his reputation as a knockout artist early in his professional career after winning his first six fights, Including five first-round TKOs.

Thaw possesses immense power as well as a killer instinct, which makes him a nasty proposition for any opponent. He has proven himself to be a threat to almost any fighter on the feet thanks to the seemingly never-ending pressure he puts opponents under.

His killer instinct was unmistakable in his ground and pound finish of kat Pali at ONE Championship – state of warriors (October 7th, 2016).

Thaw’s only loss to date came two fights ago against Keanu Subba, who submitted Thaw with a guillotine choke after just 2:47 seconds of the first round. This fight exposed Thaw’s vulnerability during grappling exchanges and provided future opponents with a template tactic to beat him.

After experiencing the disappointment of his first loss Thaw bounced back strongly in his next fight with another first-round knockout t his knockout came at the expense of his most experienced opponent to date, Indonesian, Yohan Legowo.

This took his professional record to its current standing of 7-1. His seven victories to date consist of six first-round knockouts and a single split decision victory.

His fight at Legendary Quest will be the 34-year-olds first time fighting outside of Myanmar. Some fighters might find this a daunting proposition, although the idea of fighting in a foreign country does not have appeared to have fazed him.

When asked about fighting outside of his home country for the first time Thaw said:

“It is my first match on foreign soil, so it will be a new experience, and I may need a bit of acclimatization, but I don’t know what difference it will make otherwise.”

Thaw enjoys his reputation as a knockout artist, although he does not want this to be all he is known for. In order to be recognized as a well-rounded fighter, as well as to prepare for his upcoming fight he decided to travel to America to train.
He believes that this training camp has improved his offensive and defensive tactics, as well as his timing and movement.

Thaw may be a local celebrity in his home country of Myanmar but he remains relatively unknown outside of the country. This upcoming fight is a good opportunity for him to expand on his extremely loyal but currently regionalized fan base.

The MMA community is likely to be drawn in by his exciting and aggressive fighting style. He is known for pressuring his opponent right from the first bell and not letting up on his relentless pace. The pressure he puts his opponents under during fights could turn carbon into a diamond.

Any match involving Thaw is always thrilling to watch for the short amount of time they usually last. In total his eight fights have lasted a combined total of just over 34 minutes.

Thaw may be an exciting fighter to watch although he is fairly limited which means that a world title will always be a few steps too far for him. His game has too many holes that I don’t believe he will ever be able to truly overcome.

Thaw may never hold any world championship gold during his career but he will almost certainly become a fan favorite because he never has a boring fight. His fighting mentality and style are the complete opposite of the concept of a boring fight.

Thaw’s fighting mentality is similar to that of UFC superstar Justin Gaethje. Both Thaw and Gaethje fight without a sense of fear. They both often throw caution to the wind during striking exchanges and are willing to take a punch if it means they can land one in return.

Describing their styles as ‘fighting with reckless abandonment’ may be a little harsh and overly simplified but it isn’t far away from the truth.

Thaw’s mentality and style of fighting mean that fans will pay to watch his fight regardless of the outcome. Promotions have always and will continue to always need fighters like this thanks to their ability to sell tickets and get people excited about a fight, regardless of their records.

Both Phoe Thaw and Victorio Senduk prefer to stand and strike during their fights, which makes for an intriguing and exciting match up. I fully expect that this bout will finish inside of the distance with a TKO.

When Senduk was questioned about the upcoming fight with Thaw he said:

“I prefer to stand up and fight and I may be even more aggressive than him. I will avoid becoming get careless in the fight in order to manage my stamina.”

If that response doesn’t indicate that this is going to be a striking contest, likely decided by who can pressure their opponent into fighting moving backward, then I don’t know what does.

If you can’t wait until June 15th to see Phoe Thaw’s return to action against Victorio Senduk, then the ONE Championship has you covered with videos of his past fights available for free on the app.

ONE Championship Legendary Quest will be streaming live and for free from Shanghai via the ONE app on the 15th June 2019.