TRAGEDY IN MUAY THAI After his opponent died from a knockout elbow, an MMA fighter declared retirement, saying, "No one can take that out of my head."

Anthony Durand, a MUAY THAI fighter, ended his career after his final opponent passed away due to a strike received during their fight.

After his bout on July 15 with Durand, the 25-year-old Thai fighter Phanphet Phadungchai passed dead.

At the Muay Thai Fighter X event in Thailand, Phadungchai was knocked out in the fifth round by a vicious elbow to the jaw from Durand.

Phadungchai struck his head on the canvas following the strike and was rendered unconscious.

The MMA star was taken to a hospital in Bangkok immediately, but after suffering a brain haemorrhage, doctors pronounced her brain dead.

Phadungchai was kept alive in the hospital for nine days before tragically dying over the weekend.

“May he rest in peace.” – Anthony Durand

Now that Phadungchai’s death has come to light, Frenchman Durand has declared his retirement from the sport and acknowledged he feels “responsible.”

On Facebook, he wrote:

“I’m aware I’m not responsible for what’s happening, but I can’t think ‘It’s the risks, at some point, you have to expect it’.

“I faced him for five rounds and it was one of my last shots… So of course I feel responsible and no one can take that out of my head.

“I only wish he is resting in peace now and I commit to his mother, wife, and their little girl to contribute financially until they tell me they don’t need it anymore.

“I will not return… Thank you to everyone who has been there since my debut and I am sorry because I know that some people have sacrificed a lot to see me at the top.”

Sadly, Parnpetch Padungchai passed away this evening (July 23), succumbing to injuries sustained in a Muay Thai match on July 15. According to a statement, “The entire WBC Muay Thai family expresses our condolences to the family of Parnpetch Padungchai.”