A major mix-up! The referee raised the wrong fighter's hand, causing drama to erupt at the Phayao ring, with boxing fans booing loudly until the fight had to be canceled.
It became a talk-of-the-town incident shaking the Thai boxing community! The chaotic event occurred during the “Preserving Thai Boxing Heritage: Nong Leng Sai Super Fight 2026” at Mae Chai District, Phayao Province, on the evening of 3 February. The match featured Singh Nua Adsan Patong (red corner) against Phai Ngern Kiatswap (blue corner). Throughout all five rounds, both fighters exchanged fierce blows until the match ended. However, the drama began as fans awaited the decision.
The referee raised the wrong winner’s hand in the ring, nearly causing a riot.
After the chief referee collected the scorecards from the judges below, he returned to the center of the ring and raised Phai Ngern Kiatswap’s (blue corner) hand as the winner, causing confusion among Singh Nua’s corner. Meanwhile, the blue corner was preparing to receive the award. The announcer quickly grabbed the microphone to pause the event after receiving a signal from the technical referee below: "Wait a moment! The scorecards show the red corner wins by 2 to 1." Singh Nua (red corner), who had just left the ring disappointed, rushed back up to receive the corrected hand raise as fans began booing louder, expressing their dissatisfaction with the error.
The chaos didn’t end there. Tensions around the ring escalated as fans expressed their refusal to accept the confusion caused by the officials. Ultimately, the technical referee had to make a firm decision, announcing again over the microphone: “Ladies and gentlemen, listen to the technical referee alone... This match is canceled!” The cancellation was due solely to miscommunication among the event officials.
This incident sparked widespread criticism on social media regarding the referees’ standards in the event. Many questioned how such a critical error could happen, noting that it not only demoralizes the fighters but also undermines confidence in the referees’ professionalism.