For many people, the idea of fighting for something is more of an idiom than anything else. But not for Konlak Suphisara. She has fought from the farmlands of Thailand to get to where she is today. A professional mixed martial artist, Suphisara has defied expectations to earn herself and her family a better life.
“My family has always supported my fighting,” Suphisara says. The daughter of rice farmers, she’s from Buriram – one of the poorest regions in Thailand. Her father taught her Muay Thai in his backyard gym after she became enamoured with the sport, and at the age of eight, she began her career in competitive martial arts. “I come from a poor family, I had to fight,” Suphisara says.
It is notoriously difficult to break into the professional fighting scene in Thailand, but Suphisara’s natural talent and dedication to the sport enabled her to earn sponsorships. Eventually, she was making enough money to put both herself and her sister through school and build her family a house. After gaining several titles and competing for her national team, Suphisara worked her way to become the first-ever Thai fighter signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). The UFC is the biggest and highest paying mixed martial arts competition in the world. Suphisara made her debut in 2019 and won her first fight, achieving a lifelong dream. Fighting under the name Loma Lookboonmee, she pays tribute to her father, Boonmee Suphisara, and his Lookboonmee Muay Thai Gym where she first learnt to fight.
Suphisara wants to make her country proud with her accomplishments. With grit and ambition, she has been able to bring her family out of poverty and break barriers as a Thai fighter. “I’d like to encourage people to set a goal in life and then make it happen,” Suphisara says. “No matter how tired or discouraged you get, you must keep fighting.”
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