Among the current crop of Filipino fighters, one guy stands out for two-division world champion Gerry Peñalosa.
Following the retirement of Manny Pacquiao, Peñalosa believes the next big star could be the guy who hasn’t actually been tested as a professional.
“Eumir Marcial,” Peñalosa told Daily Tribune over the weekend.
Though Marcial has had only one pro fight under his belt, Peñalosa feels the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist could be the closest thing the Philippines can have to a Pacquiao.
“He’s big and that’s rare for a Filipino fighter,” Peñalosa said.
Pacquiao’s success was made possible by his ascension to the heavier weight classes after leaving a huge impact in the lower weight categories.
Marcial, 25, fights in the middleweight division, traditionally the weight class where many marquee names used to campaign.
It was the territory of Sugar Ray Robinson, regarded as the greatest boxer of all time, and once home to Carlos Monzon, Mavin Hagler, Sugar Ray Leonard, Thomas Hearns, Roberto Duran, Bernard Hopkins and most recently Gennady Golovkin and Saul “Canelo” Alvarez.
Pacquiao didn’t actually compete at 160 lbs but he came close to, having won a portion of the world super-welter (junior-middle) in 2010 when he beat up Antonio Margarito in Texas.
Still, Pacquiao’s immense popularity stemmed from his days fighting at welterweight, another weight class that rivals the middleweight and heavyweight divisions in the number of Hall of Famers.
Peñalosa insists that Marcial, also a heavy-handed southpaw like Pacquiao, has a long way to go.
“If he can improve a lot, then he has the potential to become the next big thing,” Peñalosa, now 49, said.
Remember, Peñalosa stressed, the middleweight is oozing with talent.
“The best boxers compete at this weight class. There is an abundance of talent at middleweight and even if the stars like Golovkin are on the way out, there’d be plenty who are capable of stepping up.”
Marcial, who fights out of the Pacquiao-owned MP Promotions, will have his second pro bout in December.
Interestingly, there has only been one Filipino boxer to win the world middleweight crown: Ceferino Garcia.
He was the champion from 1939 to 1940.
Indeed, the road to stardom for Marcial is rough and rocky.
