Kaoklai was told early on that he was not a good fighter but what he lacked in skills and experience he made up for it with grit and hard work, consistently honing his fighting techniques and physical fitness.

Kaoklai eventually moved to the capital city, Bangkok, to continue his training at the famous Jocky gym. There, he learnt to support himself because his parents were unable to send him any money. He would borrow money from a nearby shop and each time he borrowed, Kaoklai would mark it down and promised he would pay it off once he had enough money. He would come to fulfil this promise after he started to win prize money from fights.

His first memorable fight was at age 19, at Rajadamnern stadium, he was arranged to fight a reigning champion Charnvit Kiat Tor Bor Ubon and he was expected to lose. Luck however sided with him and he won the welterweight championship title.

Since then, Kaoklai has participated in over 200 professional fights across various countries including Turkey, New Zealand, Germany, Australia, China, Netherlands, France, Czech Republic, Australia, The United States of America, South Korea, Japan, and Jamaica. He quickly rose through the ranks in the Muay Thai circuit winning numerous championships along the way. He is a two-time Rajadamnern Muay Thai champion, WBC Muay Thai Light Heavyweight world champion, International Karate Kickboxing Council world cruiserweight champion, and K-1 heavyweight World Grand Prix champion.

He went into each fight not knowing if he would win or lose but he promised himself to always try his best and even if he lost, he would not give up fighting so long as he was physically able to because he needed the income to support his family. He eventually saved up enough money from his fights to help buy land and build a house for his family.

The K-1 World Grand Prix, a premier kickboxing tournament featuring the world’s top fighters, was where Kaoklai fought some of his more notable opponents. These included Canadian MMA fighter Denis Kang, Belarusian heavyweight kickboxer Alexey Ignashov and Korean superheavyweight wrestler Choi Hongman. Despite being relatively unknown on the global stage at the time, Kaoklai stunned audiences with his electrifying performance and defeated several seasoned competitors to win the 2004 championship. One of his most famous fights was against American kickboxer ‘Mighty Mo’ who outweighed Kaoklai by 108lbs. Despite the odds stacked against him, Kaoklai displayed remarkable skill and fearlessness, delivering a stunning knockout victory over Mighty Mo, bringing one of the most iconic moments in K-1 history.

Known for his quick reflexes and fluid techniques, Kaoklai was called ‘The Matrix Defence’ because the techniques looked like Neo from The Matrix movie. He was also known for fighting opponents much bigger in size and heavier in weight than himself earning him the nickname ‘Giant Killer’.

Kaoklai retired from fighting in 2012 after a fight left him with a broken nose for which he had to undergo surgery and take a hiatus. After that incident, Kaoklai noticed that he was no longer able to physically keep up his breathing when fighting and had to give up competing.

Kaoklai’s mother died from kidney failure shortly after he retired from fighting. It was a difficult time for him as Kaoklai had to grieve over the loss of his fighting career which was the main source of financial income for his family and the loss of his mother. Kaoklai’s mother had previously rejected a kidney transplant from Kaoklai as she knew how important it was for him to be in top physique to continue fighting and did not want him to risk his health.

Kaoklai set up a Muay Thai gym in his hometown of Khon Kaen just before he retired from fighting. He wanted to invest his time and efforts in training a new generation of fighters as well as to pass down his own experience. He ran the training camp for about 7-8 years.

In 2018, he was offered the chance to come to Singapore to work as a Muay Thai instructor in a world-renowned gym. Kaoklai saw this as an opportunity to broaden his coaching experience and get out of his comfort zone. He has since been teaching Muay Thai sessions in Singapore for about 5-6 years and improving his English skills along the way.

Kaoklai’s life has been fraught with challenges, he had to fight very hard in and out of the ring to get to where he is today. He believes that not giving up on your dreams, having faith in your own capabilities and working hard are important values that will help one achieve one’s goals.

Kaoklai credits Muay Thai for opening a path in his career. He hopes to continue teaching Muay Thai and to make his sessions as enjoyable as possible for people of all levels so that they too can benefit and appreciate this sport that he loves. He understands Muay Thai is a physically demanding sport that tests one’s agility, stamina, and strength. He strongly encourages and incorporates aspects of weights and cardiovascular exercises in his sessions to provide students with well-rounded training. By doing so he believes that it will help reduce sports injuries and allow students to progress better in their Muay Thai training. He envisions helping his students achieve their desired physical fitness and have a fighter’s disciplined and resilient mentality to overcome their own life’s challenges.