| Lone Chaw | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1976-10-30) October 30, 1976 (age 48) Ayeyarwady, Burma |
| Native name | Maung Naing Lin |
| Other names | လုံးချော |
| Height | 1.83 m (6 ft 0 in) |
| Weight | 80 kg (176 lb; 12 st 8 lb) |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Team | Thut Ti Lethwei Gym, KLN |
| Trainer | Saw Ayeyar U Daung Nyo Win Zin Oo |
| Years active | 1995–2012 |
| Spouse | Ma Zin Zin Mya |
Lone Chaw (Burmese: လုံးချော) is a retired Burmese Lethwei fighter and former Openweight Lethwei World Champion.
Personal life
Lone Chaw is of Karen descent. He was born in a humble village in the Ayeyarwady division in Myanmar. He dropped out of school in the ninth grade and started working at the family farm full-time. In 1995, he started training Lethwei and became determined to be a successful professional fighter when he learned his hometown did not boast a Myanmar Lethwei champion. He moved to Yangon in 1999 to pursue that goal. His first fight was at a traditional festival.
In 2012, he joined Thut Ti Lethwei Gym as head trainer and teacher under camp owner Win Zin Oo. In 2012, at 36 years old, Lone Chaw retired from fighting and started coaching. Lone Chaw eventually left Thut Ti to form his own camp with the help of his father.
Lethwei career
Lone Chaw made a name for himself by fighting local and international competition. Notably, he was one of the first Lethwei fighter to go fight in Japan.
In 1999, Lone Chaw won the Myanmar Interstate Division Title and the Golden Belt Championship in 2006 and 2007. His most notorious fight was against the legendary Shwe War Tun in 2006, whom he had admired before he became a professional fighter. In an interview, Lone Chaw said "Shwe War Tun is an idol for me because of his fighting capability. I really respect him." In 2006, Shwe Sai was stripped of the Openweight Lethwei World title due to inability to defend the title. Former Openweight champion Shwe War Tun was selected to face Lone Chaw who was number one contender for the vacant openweight title. Traditionally the Lethwei Golden Belt is passed on by incapacitating the champion by KO, TKO or forfeit, but if the title is vacant it is mandatory to determine a winner. After 5 rounds, as it is mandatory to crown a new champion, Lone Chaw was declared winner and became the new Openweight Champion.
On April 26, 2008, the fight against Win Tun ended in a bloody draw. The result was a big blow to Lone Chaw's reputation, as the 63 kg challenger Win Tun controlled most of the fight.
On July 27, 2008, Lone Chaw who was coming from 10 consecutive draws, defeated Lethwei rising star Wunna by TKO in Yangon. Wunna was dropped by a fury of punches and wasn't able to answer the count.
On March 1, 2009, Lone Chaw lost the Openweight World title to Saw Nga Man in Yangon, Myanmar. Lone Chaw violated the MTLF traditional code of conduct and regulations in when he landed a heavy flying kick when on Saw Nga Man when he was in the corner of the ring with his back turned. The violation caused chaos and fans were calling for Lone Chaw's eviction from the ring. The organisers were forced to turn the lights out on the angry crowd. The three judges reminded Lone Chaw to abide by the traditional boxing rules. The electricity was restored within a few minutes but the crowd had turned on the champion Lone Chaw and was now cheering for Saw Nga Man on for the remainder of the bout. The chief judge U Dang Ni said he had taken Lone Chaw's conduct into account to crown the new champion "The win was deserved for Saw Nga Man because he was superior to Lone Chaw, both in technique and in adhering to the rules and regulations." he said. Lone Chaw expressed that he never set out to deliberately break the code of conduct. He stated that the violation was made out of frustration since Saw Nga Man had been elusive and did not allow him to land his trademark flying knee or his straight right punches.
On 4 May, 2009, as reported by MMA Mania, Lone Chaw faced Shwe Sai in Yangon and the fight ended as a draw after a spectacular knockout from Shwe Saw, however Lone Chaw used his special time-out and finished the fight aggressively and almost knocked out Shwe Sai at the end of the bout.
Championships and accomplishments
Championships
- Lethwei World Champion
- Other titles
- 2006 Golden Belt Champion
- 2007 Golden Belt Champion
- 2008 Intl. Challenge Fight victor
- 1999 Myanmar Interstate Tournament Champion
Lethwei record
| 43 fights, 13 wins (11 (KO/TKO's), 7 losses, 24 draws | ||||||||
| Date | Result | Opponent | Event | Location | Method | Round | Time | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2014-08-17 | Draw |  Shwe War Tun |
National Championship Challenge event | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 3 | 3:00 | |
| 2013-01-04 | Draw | Yan Gyi Aung |
Mandalay Rumbling Challenge | Taungoo, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2012-09-15 | Draw |  Rua Druce |
Mandalay Rumbling International Challenge | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2012-03-27 | Draw | Kyal Lin Aung |
Lethwei Challenge Fights & Fundraiser | Pyay Township, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2011-11-05 | Draw | Tun Tun |
Myanmar vs. Australia Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2011-05-17 | Loss | Phoe Kay |
Challenge Fights | Mudon Township, Myanmar | KO | 4 | ||
| 2010-12-26 | Loss | Phoe Kay |
Dagon Shwe Aung Lan Championship Semi-final | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 4 | 0:32 | |
| 2010-08-02 | Loss |  Phoe Kay |
Myingyan Challenge Fights | Mandalay, Myanmar | KO | |||
| 2009-12-14 | Loss | Shwe Sai |
Dagon Shwe Aung Lan Championship Semi-final | Yangon, Myanmar | Decision | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2009-10-25 | Draw |  Fahsura PSR Muay Thai Gym |
Myanmar vs. Thailand Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2009-09-20 | Loss | Saw Nga Man |
2009 Golden Belt Championship Final | Yangon, Myanmar | Decision | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2009-05-03 | Draw |  Naoki Samukawa |
Myanmar vs. Japan Goodwill Letwhay Competition | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2009-04-05 | Draw | Shwe Sai |
Dagon Shwe Aung Lan Championship Final | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:000 | |
| 2009-03-01 | Loss | Saw Nga Man |
Dagon Shwe Aung Lan Championship Semi-final | Yangon, Myanmar | DQ | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Lost Openweight Lethwei Golden Belt - Lone Chaw violated the MTLF traditional code of conduct. | ||||||||
| 2008-11-30 | Draw | Win Tun |
Lethwei Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-11-09 | Win | Tunthong |
Myanmar-Thai International Letwhay Challenge Fight | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 3 | 2:44 | |
| 2008-09-28 | Draw | Saw Nga Man |
Calsome Challenge Fight-1 | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-08-10 | Win | Yan Gyi Aung |
Lethwei Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 5 | 2:36 | |
| 2008-07-27 | Win | Wunna |
Thuwunna Indoor Stadium | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 2 | 1:44 | |
| 2008-04-26 | Draw | Win Tun |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-03-09 | Draw | Shwe Sai |
National Championship Challenge event (Shwe Sai) | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-02-22 | Draw | Shan Lay Thway |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-02-12 | Draw | Yan Gyi Aung |
Challenge Fights | Mandalay, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-02-02 | Draw | Thuya Ye Aung |
Challenge Fights | Mawlamyine, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2008-01-27 | Draw | Saw Nga Man |
Sittwe Challenge Fights | Sittwe, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-12-23 | Draw | Kyal Lin Aung |
Lethwei Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-11-23 | Draw | Yan Gyi Aung |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-10-23 | Draw | Shan Lay Thway |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-09-09 | Win | Zan Htoo |
Golden Belt Championship | Yangon, Myanmar | Decision | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-08-19 | Win |  Nick Fiordo |
Myanmar vs. Japan Challenge Fights | Differ Ariake Tokyo, Japan | KO | 3 | 1:34 | |
| 2007-05-12 | Draw | Zan Htoo |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-04-07 | Win | Saw Nga Man |
Kandawgyi Park Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 2 | 2:30 | |
| 2007-02 | Draw | Saw Nga Man |
Lethwei Challenge Fights | Tachileik, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2007-01-07 | Win | Shwe War Tun |
Kandawgyi Park | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | 2 | 1:55 | |
| 2006-05-21 | Win | Shwe War Tun |
Golden Belt Championship | Yangon, Myanmar | Decision | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Wins vacant Openweight Lethwei Golden Belt | ||||||||
| 2006-03-17 | Win | Tetsuya Yamauchi |
Kushima's Fight 12 | Shinjuku FACE Tokyo, Japan | KO | 3 | 2:10 | |
| 2006-01-26 | Win | Wan Chai |
Myeik city Lethwei Challenge Fights | Myeik, Myanmar | Draw | 3 | ||
| 2005-10-16 | Draw | Shwe Sai |
2nd City F.M Aung Lan Tournament, Myanmar Convention Center | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2005-09-11 | Win | Wataru Imamura |
Kushima's Fight 10 | Nagasaki Peace Kaikan Hall Nagasaki, Japan | KO | 1 | 1:25 | |
| 2005-08-07 | Draw | Saw Nga Man |
23rd Southeast Asian Games placements and Challenge Fights | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2005-04-03 | Draw | Wan Chai |
City F.M Aung Lan Tournament, Myanmar Convention Center | Yangon, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| 2004-06-05 | Loss | Wan Chai |
Myeik city Lethwei Challenge Fights | Myeik, Myanmar | KO | 3 | 2:50 | |
| 2004-02-29 | Win | Ali (Thaton) |
First class Challenge Fights at Thuwunna Gymnasium | Yangon, Myanmar | KO | |||
| 2003-05-18 | Draw | Thuya Ye Aung |
Challenge Fights, Meiktila District Sports Hall | Meiktila, Myanmar | Draw | 5 | 3:00 | |
| Legend: Win Loss Draw/No contest Notes | ||||||||
References
- Justin Calderon (24 September 2014). "Lethwei boxing in Myanmar: Asia's new martial arts sensation". CNN Travel.
- Goyder, James (22 July 2015). "Inside a Burmese Lethwei Gym". VICE Fightland.
- ^ Joe Henley (28 January 2018). "Burmese bare-knuckle kick-boxing goes mainstream as foreigners discover ancient combat sport". South China Morning Post. Archived from the original on 20 October 2021.
- ^ Tin Moe Aung (9 September 2007). "From a rice farmer to king of the ring". Myanmar Times.
- Pinky (16 July 2012). "Kick-boxer drawn into fighting for a living". Myanmar Times.
- Ophelia Bearcat (26 August 2016). "Get your kicks at a Myanmar lethwei class". Myanmar Times. Archived from the original on 19 February 2021.
- Leena Salim (3 January 2018). "Learn Martial Arts in Yangon". Myanmore Magazine.
- ^ Leena Salim (1 April 2015). "Lone Chaw - A Gentle Legend, A Lethwei Fighter". Myanmore Magazine.
- Kyaw Zin Hlaing (15 January 2016). "Lone Chaw's protégé". Myanmar Times.
- Htet Moe Thu (20 November 2019). "MMA မွာ ျမန္မာရိုးရာ လက္ေဝွ႕ ကို ခ်ျပေတာ့မဲ့ ေအာင္လအန္ဆန္း". Real Than.
- Tin Moe Aung (17 November 2008). "Myanmar's traditional boxers thrash Thai fighter in Yangon". Myanmar Times.
- Andre Malerba (22 September 2013). "Traditional kickboxing, an ancient sport makes a revival". Myanmar Times.
- Tin Moe Aung (28 April 2008). "Underdog steals the show, misses KO". Myanmar Times.
- Tin Moe Aung (4 August 2008). "Lone Chaw defeats Wunna by TKO". Myanmar Times.
- ^ Aung Sithu Hein (9 March 2009). "Saw Nga Man topples freeweight king Lone Chaw". Myanmar Times.
- Andrew Richardson (18 December 2019). "Midnight Mania! Justin Gaethje pays off student lunch debt for two schools in Denver". MMA Mania.
- Tin Moe Aung (3 December 2009). "Rising star plots assault to throne". Myanmar Times.
External links
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded byShwe Sai | Openweight Lethwei World Champion May 21, 2006 – February 28, 2009 Wins vacant title |
Succeeded bySaw Nga Man |