54-0

Wanheng Menayothin is the WBC minimumweight champion and has been the champion since November 2014. 

Born Chayaphon Moonsri in Maha Sarakham, Thailand, Menayothin has a professional boxing record of 54-0 with 18 KO’s and is ranked as the world’s best active minimumweight boxer by BoxRec, The Ring and the Transnational Boxing Rankings Board.

His last 2 title defences were against Japan’s Tatsuya Fukuhara (a rematch) and South Africa’s Simphiwe Konco respectively with all of his fights have taken place in his home country of Thailand. This was set to change as Menayothin was set to make his 13th title defense against Filipino challenger WBC #10 Marco John Rementizo this last Saturday in California, USA. The fight would not only have been Menayothin’s first fight in the US, it would also be his first fight away of his native Thailand and could also have see him extend his pro record to an unbelievable 55-0. As a result of the global hiatus in live sport, this Thai legacy will have to wait.

When one thinks of a boxing record of 55-0, it inevitably draws comparisons with the likes of Rocky Marciano (49-0) and Floyd Mayweather (50-0). 

One boxing writer stated that “Menayothin ain’t no Mayweather” and to prove that fact he made specific reference to two aspects, namely; strength of schedule and the winning percentage of their respective opponents.

• In referring to “strength of schedule”, only 36 of his 54 opponents had winning records at the time that he fought them and only 23 of those had more than 10 wins to their credit. By contrast, of Mayweather’s 50 opponents (rematches count as two), 43 had winning records, only one of whom had fewer than 10 wins.
• Looking at the winning percentage of each fighter’s respective opponents:
  Mayweather: Total Wins – 1393 / Win Percentage – 86.7%
  Menayothin: Total Wins – 625 / Win Percentage: 61.2%

There is however one aspect to this debate that must always be considered and that is a weight division’s strength & size. The depth and strength of the Welterweight, Featherweight, Lightweight, Super Featherweight, Light Middleweight, Light Welterweight divisions make Mayweather’s achievement of 50-0 a phenomenal achievement, despite criticisms about his last number of opponents (including the boxing debutant Conor McGregor). The fact is, Menayothin fights in the lightest division in boxing and it is most certainly not his fault that there is a very limited pool of diminutive fighters around the world. That said, he has fought the best that the minimumweight world has to offer and is yet to be bested. Fighting and winning 55 times in the professional era is no mean feat and yes, only time will tell if Wanheng Menayothin – one of the planet’s most accomplished and technically sound boxers – will retire undefeated.