With the anger and frustration from the shock losses of Philippine boxers and questionable decisions by referees and judges mounting, Eumir Marcial let it all out with one devastating punch.
The Filipino Olympian unleashed a booming right hook, knocking out Vietnamese opponent Manh Cuing Nguyen to advance to the gold-medal match of the men’s 80-kilogram class at the 33rd Southeast Asian Games at the Chulalongkorn Sports Center on Wednesday.
With the Filipino crowd still reeling from the shock loss of pro boxer Weljon Mindoro in the previous bout, Marcial made sure not to leave his fate in the hands of the judges, ending the fight with 35 seconds left in the second round.
“’Di ko ine-expect yung knockout na iyon, but ginawa ko lang ‘yung best ko and ‘yun nga ‘yung naging resulta,” said Marcial, flashing a wide smile after landing the punch right on his opponent’s chin.
“Alam ko na ‘pag ganu’n na mga knockdown, ihihinto na talaga ng referee iyon. Napa-smile lang ako siyempre kasi pasok na tayo sa finals,” he added.
(C) POC Media
It was the second time Nguyen fell to the canvas against Marcial. The Filipino previously knocked out the Vietnamese boxer in the 2019 SEA Games and outpointed him in the 2022 Asian Games.
With the win, Marcial joined Flint Jara, Jay Brian Baricuatro, and Aira Villegas in the gold-medal matches.
The 30-year-old Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist will face Indonesian Maikhel Muskita in the finals, who won gold and silver in the 2021 and 2023 editions of the Games, respectively.
Meanwhile, Mindoro could not sustain his strong start, struggling against the shiftier Vietnamese opponent Phuoc Tung Bui. He suffered a unanimous 5-0 loss.
The undefeated pro boxer landed big hits in the opening round but was left chasing the Vietnamese fighter, who kept his distance and landed timely counters to outpoint the Filipino.
