‘I Wanted To Keep Fighting’ – Inside The Humble Beginnings That Shaped Worapon

Thai firecracker Worapon Lukjaoporongtom has quickly become one of the standout performers in ONE Championship's weekly series, and he now steps into the biggest opportunity of his career.

The 23-year-old headlines The Inner Circle 28 against Italian standout Lenny Blasi in a bantamweight Muay Thai main event on Friday, August 28, streaming exclusively for members at live.onefc.com in Asia primetime from Bangkok's Lumpinee Stadium.

He enters the bout riding an impressive three-fight winning streak through 2026, with a US$100,000 main roster contract now firmly within reach.

Before he chases that life-changing opportunity, here is a look back at the long road that carried him here.

Every fighter has an origin story, and Worapon's begins at home in Buriram, in a household where Muay Thai was never a question of if, only when.

His father, a devoted fan of the sport, made the decision early, enrolling his son in training well before the boy had any say in the matter himself. Looking back on those early days now, he still remembers how it all began.

"I started really young, around kindergarten, when I was about 6 years old. But, honestly, I didn't even like Muay Thai. My dad was a huge fight fan, while I preferred playing football."

That reluctance did not last. Worapon eventually gave the sport a shot, and what started as a spur-of-the-moment decision at a local temple festival ended up changing the course of his childhood.

Life growing up in rural Buriram came with its own modest realities, and the reward that came with that first battle meant more than just bragging rights among friends.

"My first fight happened when I was 7, and I had zero training beforehand. There was a local temple festival in our village, and I always saw them training and holding fights, so I wanted to give it a try. I just went up there throwing wild punches like any kid would. "Surprisingly, I won that first fight and earned about 150 Thai Baht (approximately US$4.50), which I used to buy a remote-controlled car I'd been eyeing. Earning my own money as a kid without having to ask my parents made me fall in love with it, and I wanted to keep fighting."

"My first fight happened when I was 7, and I had zero training beforehand. There was a local temple festival in our village, and I always saw them training and holding fights, so I wanted to give it a try. I just went up there throwing wild punches like any kid would.

"Surprisingly, I won that first fight and earned about 150 Thai Baht (approximately US$4.50), which I used to buy a remote-controlled car I'd been eyeing. Earning my own money as a kid without having to ask my parents made me fall in love with it, and I wanted to keep fighting."

Once that first taste of victory hit, Worapon's relationship with Muay Thai transformed almost overnight. He began training under his father's guidance at Phaidong Gym in his hometown.

The young gun participated in fights at temple festivals and regional circuits across Buriram, building the kind of experience that only comes from stacking up wins and losses in equal measure.

But it was a decision his father made a few years later that set his path in stone. Balancing school and serious training became impossible, and a choice had to be made about where his priorities belonged:

"It was when my dad sent me to stay at a fight camp during school breaks that I truly improved. At the time, I was attending a boarding school in the city, catching a van at 5:00 AM and not getting home until 5:00 PM or 6:00 PM, which left no time for proper training. "Once I committed to fighting, I transferred out of the city school to a local public school near home in Buriram so I could train full-time when I was around 9 or 10 years old. I kept training and fighting locally until I got the opportunity to fight in Bangkok when I was about 13 or 14."

"It was when my dad sent me to stay at a fight camp during school breaks that I truly improved. At the time, I was attending a boarding school in the city, catching a van at 5:00 AM and not getting home until 5:00 PM or 6:00 PM, which left no time for proper training.

"Once I committed to fighting, I transferred out of the city school to a local public school near home in Buriram so I could train full-time when I was around 9 or 10 years old. I kept training and fighting locally until I got the opportunity to fight in Bangkok when I was about 13 or 14."

Around that same stretch of his childhood, Worapon found more than just a training routine. He found a hero, one whose rise through the Muay Thai and kickboxing ranks was impossible to ignore for a young fighter chasing the same dream.

That idol was none other than "The Kicking Machine" Superlek , now the reigning ONE Flyweight Kickboxing World Champion.

"He has always been my idol. I admire everything about his game – his strike variation, speed, roundhouse kicks, and mid-fight tactical adjustments. I've followed his career since I was a kid and before I moved to Bangkok to fight. "He was already a huge star back then, and I try to integrate elements of his style into my own game, particularly his kicks and knees."

"He has always been my idol. I admire everything about his game – his strike variation, speed, roundhouse kicks, and mid-fight tactical adjustments. I've followed his career since I was a kid and before I moved to Bangkok to fight.

"He was already a huge star back then, and I try to integrate elements of his style into my own game, particularly his kicks and knees."

Every Muay Thai fighter chasing a career in Thailand dreams of competing on the country's most iconic stages, and Worapon's first shot at one came during his teenage years.

Stepping into that spotlight for the first time, however, was an entirely different experience from anything he had known.

"My first Bangkok fight was at Channel 7 Stadium, and I was incredibly nervous. I grew up watching Channel 7 Muay Thai on TV, so I never imagined I'd actually be fighting there."

A move to the historic Rajadamnern Stadium followed soon after, and as his profile continued to grow, he continued to test himself inside the legendary Lumpinee Stadium under the ONE Championship banner.

His promotional bow at ONE Friday Fights 15 in May 2023 did not go to plan, though. Running his entire camp out of Buriram rather than a bigger training hub left him short on the experience needed at that level, and he suffered a narrow decision loss to Sibsan Nokkhao KorMor11 .

Worapon knew a change was needed to compete at that level, and it did not take long before he made the permanent move to Sor Dechapan in Bangkok, a decision that instantly paid off with back-to-back victories on ONE Friday Fights.

"It was my first time living in Bangkok, so everything felt exciting and brand new. The training system here is completely different – it's highly structured and disciplined, with specialized training that helped me continuously elevate my skills. "I won my second and third fights with the promotion and even earned double performance bonuses. That was a huge turning point. Moving to a new environment opened up new opportunities and brought things into my life I'd never experienced before."

"It was my first time living in Bangkok, so everything felt exciting and brand new. The training system here is completely different – it's highly structured and disciplined, with specialized training that helped me continuously elevate my skills.

"I won my second and third fights with the promotion and even earned double performance bonuses. That was a huge turning point. Moving to a new environment opened up new opportunities and brought things into my life I'd never experienced before."

Momentum rarely moves in a straight line, and Worapon's case was no different. The 23-year-old's rise came to a temporary halt when he fell short on the judges' scorecards in his next three outings.

It was not just a loss of form. Away from the bright lights, the Thai athlete was dealing with something far heavier, and it showed in the way he carried himself during that stretch.

"My morale took a heavy hit during that time because I lost my younger sibling. I had to battle through a lot internally – fighting my own mindset while dealing with personal factors that deeply affected my mental state."

Whatever internal battles he fought behind the scenes, they did not stop him. Worapon has since returned with a 7-1 run, including three straight victories in 2026 – each one building his case for a life-changing US$100,000 contract.

It has been a long road for the 6-year-old in Buriram, but every stop along the way has shaped the version of Worapon stepping in against Blasi.

The story continues at The Inner Circle 28, where one more win could change the course of Worapon's life, both on and off the global stage.