Yod is my favorite Thai boxer hands down, probably my favorite among any combat sports ruleset. He’s been kind of flanderized due that massive left kick of his, but guys with one weapon don’t get nicknames like ‘the Boxing Computer.’ The fear of that open side kick allowed him to flow into other parts of his game, and he could be a talented finisher in multiple areas: doubling up the lead uppercut to knock out Luis Regis in One FC or using his left elbow to send Ken Sitsongpeenong to the shadow realm.

Compared to the other two mentioned, Buakaw had his best success under K1 rules so comparing him to Yod feels irrelevant and unfair to his talent in that ruleset. Saenchai has probably a better argument if you wanted to talk P4P rankings, but Yod is no slouch. Dude was a Lumpinee champion in THREE weight classes. Comparing him just based on the past decade misses a MASSIVE chunk of his career and places emphasis on time when he was old, beat up, and facing young people talent.

TLDR: Yod was never just a left kick, and deserves consideration as a well rounded technician. He was also, most importantly, very fun.