| 2017 in WLC | |
|---|---|
| Information | |
| First date | March 3, 2017 |
| Last date | November 4, 2017 |
| Events | |
| Total events | 3 |
| Fights | |
| Total fights | 26 |
The year 2017 is the 1st year in the history of the World Lethwei Championship, a Lethwei promotion based in Myanmar.
| # | Event | Date | Venue | Location | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | WLC 1: The Great Beginning | March 3, 2017 | Mingalardon Event Zone |  Yangon, Myanmar | |
| 2 | WLC 2: Ancient Warriors | June 10, 2017 | Thuwunna Stadium | Yangon, Myanmar | |
| 3 | WLC 3: Legendary Champions | November 4, 2017 | Thuwunna Stadium | Yangon, Myanmar |
| WLC 1: The Great Beginning | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | World Lethwei Championship | |||
| Date | March 3, 2017 | |||
| Venue | Mingalardon Event Zone | |||
| City | Yangon, Myanmar | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
WLC 1: The Great Beginning was the inaugural Lethwei event organized by World Lethwei Championship [1] and took place on March 3, 2017, at the Mingalardon Event Zone in Yangon, Myanmar. [2]
The first WLC event was highly anticipated by the Lethwei fans around the world [3] and took place on re-purposed driving range of the Mingalardon Country Club [4] which was specially built for the event. [5] The weigh-ins for the event were held in Kandawgyi Park in Yangon. [6]
After losing his title to Dave Leduc in December 2016, [7] [8] Lethwei superstar Tun Tun Min returned to face British kickboxer Nicholas Carter in the main event. [9] Tun Tun Min won the fight via brutal knockout in the first round. [10] The co-main event featured Lethwei champion Too Too against Australian Muaythai fighter Eddie Farrell. [11] Too Too won his fight by unanimous decision after he lacerated Farrel's face with punches [12] and opened up a huge gash on his orbital bone. [13]
| WLC 1: The Great Beginning | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Middleweight 75 kg | Tun Tun Min | def. |  Nicholas Carter | Knockout | 1 | 2:59 | |
| Middleweight 75 kg | Too Too | def. |  Eddie Farrell | Decision (unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Thway Thit Win Hlaing | def. | Saw Ba Oo | Decision (unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Phoe Thaw | def. |  Jian Kai Chee | Knockout | 1 | 0:47 | |
| Welterweight 67 kg | Sein Myo Aung | def. | Ye Man Hein | Decision (unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Welterweight 67 kg | Kyar Pouk | def. |  Prak Chansin | Knockout | 1 | 1:34 | |
| Light Welterweight 63.5 kg | Yan Naing Tun | def. | Zwe Shwe Ko | Knockout | 3 | 0:22 | |
| Featherweight 57 kg | Thet Paing Oo | def. | Shwe Phar Se | Decision (Split) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Pite Htwe | def. | Tun Tun Naing | Knockout | 2 | 1:00 | |
| Lightweight 60 kg | Ye Tway | def. | Saw Min Naing | Decision (unanimous) | 3 | 3:00 | |
| WLC 2: Ancient Warriors | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | World Lethwei Championship | |||
| Date | June 10, 2017 | |||
| Venue | Thuwunna Stadium | |||
| City | Yangon, Myanmar | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
WLC 2: Ancient Warriors was a Lethwei event held on June 10, 2017, in Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar. [15]
The main event featured a bout between top lethwei fighter Soe Lin Oo [16] and Polish kickboxing champion Artur Saladiak. [17] The co-main event featured Lethwei star Too Too against French Muaythai champion James Benal, France's top welterweight. [18] Brent Bolsta was originally scheduled to compete at the event, [19] but was involved in a motorcycle accident five days before the event. After 5 rounds, Too Too defeated Benal by decision [20] and it was announced that he will be facing multiple-times Australian Muay Thai champion Michael Badato for the Middleweight World Lethwei Championship. [21] Artur Saladiak outpointed Soe Lin Oo in the main event to earn a decision win, [22] becoming the first foreign fighter to defeat Soe Lin Oo. [23]
| WLC 2: Ancient Warriors | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Light Middleweight 71 kg |  Artur Saladiak | def. | Soe Lin Oo | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Middleweight 75 kg | Too Too | def. |  James Benal | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Thway Thit Win Hlaing | def. | Shwe Yar Mann | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Phoe Thaw | def. | Josh Fitzroy | Knockout | 4 | 2:35 | |
| Welterweight 67 kg | Kyar Pouk | def. | Htet Aung Oo | Knockout (Medical Stoppage) | 2 | 1:12 | |
| Welterweight 67 kg | Phoe La Pyae | def. | Sein Myo Aung | Knockout | 2 | 1:48 | |
| Middleweight 75 kg | Pite Htwe | def. | Ye Yint Aung | Decision (Unanimous) | 4 | 3:00 | |
| Welterweight 67 kg | Sithu | def. | Shan Lay | Decision (Split) | 4 | 3:00 | |
| WLC 3: Legendary Champions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Information | ||||
| Promotion | World Lethwei Championship | |||
| Date | November 4, 2017 | |||
| Venue | Thuwunna Stadium | |||
| City | Yangon, Myanmar | |||
| Event chronology | ||||
| ||||
WLC 3: Legendary Champions was Lethwei event held on November 4, 2017, in Thuwunna Stadium in Yangon, Myanmar. [25]
The main event featured Lethwei champion Too Too [26] against Australian kickboxing champion Michael Badato. [27] In the co-main event, Saw Nga Man defeated Eddie Farrell by unanimous decision. [28] After a hard-fought five round battle, Too Too emerged victorious to claim the Middleweight World Lethwei Championship title. [29] Umar Semata made his debut against veteran Soe Lin Oo and lost by knockout in the second round. [30] ONE Championship Middleweight World Champion Aung La Nsang also made a special appearance at the event.
| WLC 3: Legendary Champions | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weight Class | Method | Round | Time | Notes | |||
| Middleweight 75 kg | Too Too | def. | Michael Badato | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | For the Middleweight World Lethwei Championship |
| Super Middleweight 79 kg | Saw Nga Man | def. | Eddie Farrell | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Soe Lin Oo | def. |  Umar Semata | Knockout | 2 | 1:14 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Artur Saladiak | def. |  Alex Bublea | Decision (Unanimous) | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Thway Thit Win Hlaing | def. | Shan Ko | Knockout | 1 | 1:55 | |
| Light Middleweight 71 kg | Phoe La Pyae | def. | Rin Saroth | Knockout | 3 | 1:10 | |
| Featherweight 57 kg | Mite Yine | def. | Pha Kyaw Hae | Decision (Unanimous) | 2 | 2:50 | |
| Lightweight 60 kg | Chit Maung Maung | def. | Doe Lay | Decision (Unanimous) | 4 | 3:00 | |
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Lethwei or Burmese boxing is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world, as the sport is practiced bareknuckle with only tape and gauze while fighters are allowed to strike with their fists, elbows, knees, and feet, and the use of headbutts is also permitted. Disallowed in most combat sports, headbutts are important weapons in a Lethwei fighter's arsenal, giving Lethwei its name of the "Art of nine limbs". This, combined with its bareknuckle nature, gave Lethwei a reputation for being one of the bloodiest and most violent martial arts. A vast majority of Lethwei fighters originate from the Karen ethnicity.
Umar Semata is a Ugandan middleweight and super middleweight Muay Thai fighter and the former World Boxing Council Muay Thai Interim Super Middleweight Champion, a title he has held since 14 June 2013.
Tun Tun Min is a Burmese Lethwei fighter of Mon descent. He is the former openweight Lethwei World Champion. He is the youngest fighter to ever win the Lethwei Golden Belt, obtaining the title at age 21, and is notable for fighting foreign challengers from outside Myanmar.
Dave Leduc is a Canadian former Lethwei fighter. He is a former 6-times Lethwei World Champion who held the openweight Lethwei Golden Belt and was undefeated under traditional rules KO to win. Leduc gained widespread notoriety by winning his fight in the controversial Prison Fight.
World Lethwei Championship was a Lethwei promotion based in Yangon, Myanmar. The promotion brought to the millennia-old Burmese martial of Lethwei to UFC Fight Pass and showcased it to the world. The WLC events combined the historic traditions of Lethwei with modern entertainment. It held its first event on March 3, 2017 and its last event on September 25, 2020.
Too Too was a Burmese Lethwei fighter who competed in World Lethwei Championship. He was the former WLC Middleweight World champion and was undefeated under traditional Lethwei rules, holding the 75 kg Lethwei Golden Belt since 2015 until his death in 2023, while in captivity by the Tatmadaw. He also competed in a Lethwei superfight at Kunlun Fight 25 in Slovakia.
Saw Nga Man, also known as Saw Shark, is a retired Burmese Lethwei fighter and former Openweight Lethwei World Champion.
Mite Yine is a Burmese Lethwei fighter who competes in the World Lethwei Championship's Featherweight division. He is a former Lethwei Golden Belt champion, having won the title in 2015 and 2016.
International Lethwei Federation Japan, also known as ILFJ, is a Japanese Lethwei promotion company with headquarters in Tokyo.
2016 was the first year in the history of the ILFJ, a Japanese Lethwei promotion. The events were broadcast through television agreements with regional channels in Japan.
The year 2017 was the second year in the history of the ILFJ, a Japanese Lethwei promotion and the year started with Lethwei in Japan 2: Legacy. The events are streamed online by FITE TV, Abema TV in Japan and through television agreements with MNTV in Myanmar.
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The year 2018 is the 2nd year in the history of the World Lethwei Championship, a Lethwei promotion based in Myanmar.
The year 2019 is the 3rd year in the history of the World Lethwei Championship, a Lethwei promotion based in Myanmar.
Shwe Sai, is a retired Burmese Lethwei fighter and former Openweight Lethwei World Champion.
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