‘I Kept Winning’ – How Phetjeeja Went From Fighting Boys To Chasing Two-Sport Glory

Before she attempts to become a two-sport ONE World Champion at The Inner Circle on Friday, June 19, “The Queen” Phetjeeja Lukjaoporongtom continues to carry one of the most unique stories in all of combat sports.

The reigning ONE Women’s Atomweight Kickboxing World Champion will challenge ONE Women’s Atomweight Muay Thai World Champion Allycia Hellen Rodrigues for the undisputed crown in a massive clash between two of the greatest pound-for-pound female strikers on the planet. The blockbuster bout airs live in Asia primetime, exclusively on live.onefc.com from Bangkok’s iconic Lumpinee Stadium.

Yet, even on a resume that now includes an interim World Title, a World Championship unification victory, and a successful defense of her undisputed kickboxing crown, one specific chapter of Phetjeeja’s journey stands entirely apart.

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Before she became “The Queen,” she was known across Thailand as the girl who defeated the boys.

Phetjeeja Fought Boys Because There Were No Girls Left To Face Her

For Phetjeeja, Muay Thai was never simply a hobby.

Like many young martial artists growing up in rural Thailand, stepping into the ring represented a crucial opportunity to earn money and help support her family from a very young age. She began fighting at just 6 years old, following in the footsteps of her older brother, but quickly discovered there were almost no female opponents available in her weight class.

So, she fought boys instead.

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At first, those matchups happened simply out of necessity. But after continuously defeating male opponents around her size, the young Thai phenom slowly became a national sensation.

The 24-year-old explained:

“I started fighting when I was 6 years old. I fought male fighters from my very first fight because there were no female fighters in my weight range. So, I started off fighting boys.”

As her reputation grew, so did the overwhelming demand for those intergender fights. Phetjeeja traveled around Thailand competing against boys in provincial stadiums, often fighting multiple times in a single day because opportunities for female fighters barely existed at the time.

By the time most children were entering secondary school, Phetjeeja had already amassed more than 100 fights. Roughly 70 of them came against boys.

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She recalled:

“I kept winning. I fought male fighters in the provinces based on weight comparison. Sometimes, I fought twice in one day against male fighters. One fight would be during the day, and another would be at night.”

Soon, Phetjeeja became nationally recognized through televised stadium fights in Bangkok, where fans across Thailand began recognizing her as the young girl defeating boys inside the ring.

Much of her training also took place alongside boys and men, helping her adapt to stronger training partners from an unusually young age.

She said:

“Sometimes I was clinched by four or five male fighters at the same time. It was to test my strength and see if I could cope with four or five men at once. Training with men all the time strengthened my heart and pushed me to fight every day.”

Phetjeeja’s Fame Eventually Changed Her Career Forever

As Phetjeeja’s fights against boys gained more national attention through televised broadcasts, the public scrutiny around intergender competition intensified.

Although regulations against male-versus-female fights already existed in Thailand, they had rarely been strictly enforced on the provincial Muay Thai circuits.

That abruptly changed once Phetjeeja’s fights started airing nationwide. She still vividly remembers learning about the sudden decision just moments before one of her scheduled fights.

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Phetjeeja explained:

“I heard that I might not be able to fight again because the Sports Authority of Thailand was against it. The promoter told me that I couldn’t fight because they no longer allowed fights between male and female fighters.”

The decision absolutely devastated her.

Ironically, the massive success that made her famous also threatened to end her career prematurely. There were almost no girls willing to fight her, and now she could no longer face boys either. Phetjeeja genuinely feared she might not have a future in Muay Thai at all.

She recalled:

“I was really disappointed because I had always been fighting against male fighters. There were no female fighters around. Female fighters were really rare. No one would fight with me.”

For several months, her fighting career effectively stalled. Eventually, promoters began matching her against significantly larger and older female opponents simply to keep her active. Despite often giving away several kilograms in weight and facing physically stronger rivals, she continued winning, ultimately building the elite resume that would later make her one of Thailand’s most decorated female strikers.

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Today, Phetjeeja owns a remarkable 210-6 career record, but she firmly believes those incredibly difficult years shaped the unbreakable mentality that still drives her today.

She said:

“Fighting male fighters shaped and strengthened my heart to be durable and patient until today. Without those days and without my father by my side, there wouldn’t be me today.”

Childhood Rivals Turned Global Stars

Among all the boys Phetjeeja fought growing up, one name remained especially memorable: former ONE Atomweight Muay Thai World Title challenger Songchainoi Kiatsongrit.

The pair fought each other three different times as children during Phetjeeja’s rise through Thailand’s provincial circuits, developing a fierce rivalry that later beautifully evolved into mutual respect and friendship.

Years later, both eventually arrived in ONE Championship together.

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For Phetjeeja, seeing Songchainoi competing on the same global stage felt less like reconnecting with an old rival and more like reuniting with someone who truly understood her difficult journey.

The Team Mehdi Zatout star concluded:

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