John Wayne Parr says vs Yodsanklai

On the 10th of December I had my chance fighting Yodsanklai for the first ever WBC Muay Thai world title but unfortunately was beaten by the better man on the day.

I had the Preacher fight on the 19th and wasn't happy with my fitness so after three days off got back into the gym and picked my training up another two notches.

After the Preacher fight we tried our best to bring out my Thai pad holder from Thailand but had a few problems with his visa's, he only arrived ten days prior to the fight and only got to hold pads for me 6 days, it was still great having him though and in a short time had my attacks nice and solid again.

Over the weeks I slowly got my weight down at a manageable weight, after training I was sitting 74kg and walking around about 77kg, the last few fights I have had been walking around 79kg and was taking too much out of me getting to 70kg, I also wasn't keen to lose that much weight again after only losing it three weeks prior.

After cutting my food right back and two runs with the suit on and I was down to 69.5kg, the lightest I had been in many years. The cut off weight for the title was 69.85kg and I didn't want to have to weigh-in twice.

Night of the fight and the place was pumping, the Gold Coast convention center was almost full with about 4000 people. Wasn't on till 2nd last fight so just chilled in the room with my Thai trainers and Paul Briggs who came up from Sydney just for my fight.

I had a lot going through my head with everyone telling me different things, I was worried he was going to go for my shin and it was going to split again, after Preacher fight I had to get 6 stitiches and it was still very raw. I also heard around the traps he wanted to take my head off with elbows and boxing so had plenty to think about.

Once I was up I couldn't wait to get in there, this is the moment I had been fighting for and was ready to make history being the first ever WBC Muay Thai world title.

After our Ram Muay's the fight started and Yodsanklai wasted no time throwing a big inside leg kick putting me off balance a little bit. Yod also threw some sneaky punches getting past my guard landing.

Every time I tried to attack Yod would just be that little bit out of range making me hit nothing but air, I didn't lose focus though and knew my shots would catch up with him sooner or later.

2nd round and I tried to pick it up and put the pressure on, once again I would loaded up with 6 to 8 punch combo's, and I must give it to Yod as he has great eyes and great defense and would slip with all without my glove even hitting him.

Just near the end of the round (after watching Dalia's handy cam) Yod faked with his right lead leg for a front kick then came up over the top with a left head kick landing flush on my jaw, I remember my body falling backwards and hitting the canvas hard, was like being thrown down on the ground by ten men.

I got up and fought on and luckily it wasn't too long before the bell went.

Round 3 and from here on in a really can't remember, I watched the tape Yesterday and wasn't happy with my self, I think I just did what I had to to survive and running on automatic.

Yod was landing with his left leg and I was just blocking with no returns, other times I would try to return but the impact of the kicks would push me off balance.

Round 4, See round 3, not much difference.

Round five and finally starting to come clear. This was the last round and only had three minutes if I wanted that belt. This was my best round landing with a few nice punches and kicks and put the pressure right on.

End of the round Yod landed another nice head kick and when I went to counter slipped on the canvas making it look worse then it was, Cameron Quinn the Referee seen it as a slip though let the fight continue, wasn't long then the fight was over.

End of the fight I knew I had lost but I really did give it everything I had, I lost to a twenty year old who is a current Thailand and Lumpinee champion with 220 fights and happy I gave him a hard fight. After the announcements Yodsanklai's hand was raised in victory and the belt went around the waist. Yod Gave a speech in little English he knew and the crowd gave him a big applause.

Half way through my speech the penny must have dropped that I just lost hold of my dream then the bottom lip started going on me without me being able to do anything about it, after trying to hold myself together and trying again but with no success.

Angie my wife, Richard Vell my sponsor, Paul briggs and many of my friends have never seen me cry and it sucked, not only that but in front of 4000 people and on TV but that's how much it ment to me I guess.

Looking forward to having a bit of a break over Christmas, I am also moving Boonchu gym to a new location early in the new year and looking forward to a new beginning.

At this stage my first fight for 2006 will be against Steve Wakeling, Wembly, London on March the 12 for the WBC world Middle weight title. This is a chance to redeem myself and 2nd time around there will be no mistakes.

JWP Defeats The Preacher!

Had a great fight with Bruce Preacher Mcphee. 1st round took my time and let him attack me a little to show him I have good defense, only thing is first kick he threw I blocked and with his boney legs split my shin.

2nd round hit him with some nice body shots having him sucking on lemons a bit. 3rd I started to pick it up and caught him with a nice right hook putting him down and he did well to pull himself up off the canvas, 30sec later I put him down again with another right hook I think but half way through the count the bell went giving him 2 minutes in the corner to recover.

4th round Preacher showed a lot of heart and came out hard trying to win back the fight, but I would keep him at range and always looking for the opening. 5th round Preacher landed one nice combo during the round but I still controlled most of the round.

Bid probs to Preacher, he came to fight making it very exciting for the 4000 plus crowd. One of the best Muay Thai shows ever to be held in Australia I believe and make sure to have a look when it airs on the Fox December the 6th cause it really was an exciting fight.

Before I forget, Big thank you to Josh and Nugget having me on their promotion and thank you to everyone that supported the show from all over Australia.

An Interview with John Wayne Parr by fans

Will he retire? When does he fight next? All these questions and more answered.....
This was your interview with John Wayne Parr, these questions were emailed in by the readers of Muaythai Online. John is the Australian World Champion.

John recently defeated Scott Bannon with a second round knee stoppage for the ISKA world title. He will also be headlineing the King's Cup in Thailand on December 5th.

Thanks to all of you that sent in your questions. Our next "your chance to interview" interview will be with Mike Miles.

Question 1: John, I want to know how long you trained in Thailand and a bit about your experiences there. How did you support yourself in Thailand ? Dan Tharp 5-4-1 in KB and going to Thailand next year to train and teach. Congrats on your win and hope to see more of you..Oh , USA Kansas city Missouri
JWP: I lived in Thailand for 4 years only coming home for the X'mas New Year break. I won my first 9 fights straight over there and became the first westerner to make the front cover of Muay Thai magazine. I fought live on TV 8 times, Lumpinee 3 times and voted strongest westerner in Thailand in 1997. On December 5th it will be my third time fighting on the Kings Birthday card. I supported myself through my fight earnings and a little help from back home. Thanks Dan for your support.

Question 2: Wayne, Congratulations on your win. I just wanted to ask you, after your fight, in an interview on Fox sports you said that after the King's Birthday fights you are going to concentrate more on western boxing. I know you now have the ISKA belt, but are your still interested in going for the WMC title or are you content with the ISKA title?

JWP: The Kings Birthday will be my last Muay Thai fight unless there is a good payday in the future. There is a chance I might fight in the Middleweight K1 next year in Japan. I have done what every Muay Thai fighter could dream of and winning the world title was the icing on the cake. I am enjoying my boxing now and look forward to making some real money.
Thanks Andrew for your support.

Question 3: Hi Wayne, I've got a number of questions for you....

1. How hard was it to go over to train in Thailand did the Thailand training camps take you seriously ?
2. Boonchu gym is shaping up to be one of the strongest gyms in Queensland, do you have a strict discipline similar to Thailand training camps?
3. Is it due to lack of competition in Australia that has steered you to the boxing direction or is it the overseas fighting scene too hard to break into to eg Denmark Holland England.
4. You have a lot of young guns coming up through the ranks of Boonchu so i am sure there is no problem keeping the thai style fighting going strong. Has the influence of Dave Briggs and Rod Waterhouse improved hand fighting styles.
5. Who is the toughest fighter that you would rank in Thailand and what would the best fight you have seen in Australia? Debbie Phillips, Valhalla gym, Toowoomba.

JWP:

1. I always wanted to go to Thailand since the age of 13. At 19 I got the chance to live there for 6 months. I loved everyday and after New Years 1996 the Thai camp rang Richard and invited me back to represent their camp.
2. I just teach my boys good technique and teach them to be strong. All my boys must show heart before I let them fight.
3. I am happy with my Muay Thai career. I have been doing Muay Thai for 11 years and still haven't made any money. I always wanted to box and meeting Rod Waterhouse was a blessing.
4. My hands have improved 100% since meeting Rod & Dave Briggs and my training is a lot more professional which gives me more confidence in the ring.
5. Sangtien-noi, my trainer, has been fighting for 20 years and fought anyone. A true champion. Best fight in Australia, Paul Briggs V Shane Dargaville. Thanks Deb.

Question 4: Hello JWP, My question to you is.. I am going to be representing Canada in my weight class (feather weight) on March 2001 in Bangkok Thailand (a IAMTF sanctioned event),and know you have trained and fought in Thailand in the past. I was wondering what advice you could give us amateur fighters on training to beat a Thai fighter or even a European fighter as I know they are going to be very tough to compete against.

JWP: Thanks Kim! The best advise I can offer is be strong and never give up. Train as hard as you can so you are fit and you don't have to worry about running out of steam in the ring. Be prepared mentally for a war and your technique and fitness will carry you through.

Question 5: How long do you train per day and per week normally and then in preperation for a fight? Any chance of you fighting over here in England? What is your favourite technique in a fight? What are your feelings on the result with Scott Bannon? can you take us through the fight?

JWP:

• I train 2 ½ hours in the morning and then the same in the early evening, 6 days a week whether I have a fight or not. I'm fit to fight all year round and have a weeks rest after each contest.
• I would only fight in the UK if it was a boxing fight. Some offers have been made and we will decide what is happening early next year.
• I'm a competent all round fighter so my favourite technique would be what ever lands flush and does the job.
• I am very happy with the result as I trained for ten weeks solid preparing for Scott and although he was world champion, it became just another day in the office for me. I knew after the first round I was going to be to strong for Scott and my defense was good. The Shin kicks from the first round took their toll as I opened up in the second we got into a grapple and the first Knee I landed finished the fight. Scott put up a good fight but I was the better man on the night. Thanks Seb.