Songkram Porpaoin: Boxing Career and Notable Fights
Songkram Porpaoin is a retired Thai boxer who competed in the minimumweight division and won a WBA interim title in 1999. His twin brother Chana Porpaoin also became a prominent minimumweight champion.
A WBA title opportunity
On January 30, 1999, Porpaoin faced Filipino contender Ronnie Magramo in a bout for the WBA interim minimumweight title. The fight ended in the eighth round after an accidental head clash; Porpaoin received the technical decision. The WBA title-fight record also lists his 1997 challenge against Rosendo Álvarez, which ended in an eleventh-round stoppage.
A record built in the minimumweight division
Those bouts place Porpaoin among the Thai fighters who competed for a major world title at boxing’s lightest division. The WBA’s ranking history continued to list him among minimumweight contenders in the years after the interim-title victory.
Regional success and later appearances
Before the Magramo bout, Porpaoin pursued the PABA minimumweight championship against Randy Mangubat. Their September 1997 meeting ended in a technical draw, and Porpaoin won the return contest later that year. He subsequently recorded twelve-round victories over Reggie Palabrica and Rudolfo Fernandez during 1998.
The Magramo result was a majority technical decision, with two judges favoring Porpaoin and one returning an even score. That distinction separates the interim championship victory from his earlier unsuccessful challenge to Álvarez for the full WBA title.
His later career included a knockout win over Tatsuo Hayashida at Korakuen Hall in June 2001 and a victory over Wicha Phulaikhao in Bangkok in February 2002. The compiled professional bout record traces these appearances. Together with the WBA ranking archive, they show continued activity after his brief interim-title success, with contests at home and in Japan.
Further career results
The WBA’s archived rankings placed Porpaoin sixth among minimumweights during several months in late 2000. He remained listed in 2001, at seventh in January and February and thirteenth by May through July. Those positions provide a dated picture of his standing after the interim-title period, rather than implying that the 1999 belt continued indefinitely.
Sources
- WBA: Songkram Porpaoin profile
- BoxRec: WBA minimumweight title fights
