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Philippines, 03 Mar 2026 |
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Eumir ready for his first fight as a pro, Roach declares By Eddie Alinea of The Manila Times PhilBoxing.com Sat, 12 Dec 2020  "Eumir is ready for his pro debut.” Thus declared Hall of Fame trainer Freddie Roach as quoted by Fred Sternburg in an email message received by THE MANILA TIMES on Thursday, eight days before the Filipino middleweight Olympic qualifier Eumir Marcial fights American counterpart Andre Whitfield on December 16 (December 17 Manila time). Marcial, who is in deep preparations in his quest for the country’s first ever Olympic gold medal in next year’s XXXII Games in Tokyo, and Whitfield of Lewiston, Idaho collide in a four-round 175-pound encounter at the LA Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. "Eumir is beating up everyone he spars with. No one returns a second time,” Sternburg, president of a communication firm bearing his name, quoted Roach as saying by way of justifying the latter’s projection. Sternburg, in fact, bared he has been looking for a heavyweight fighter who Eumir can spar in the absence of a partner willing to absorb the Filipinio’s power. “I'm reaching into my pocket to bring in a heavyweight to see how he does against Eumir,” Sternburg said in his message. "I'm handling all the mitt work because that is what his manager (MP Promotions) wanted. When Marvin was doing mitt work with Eumir, it was very hard on Marvin (Somodio, Roach’s able deputy),” he noted. Marvin is great with them mitts, but he’s just too small for the kind of power Eumir has and that is no knock on Marvin, Sternburg added. “It just shows how sting Eumir is. We've done about 50 rounds of mitt work.” Sternburg added that Roach was all praises for Marcial’s attitude all throughout the two months he’s been training since emerging at the Wild Card Gym’s door asking the seven-time Trainer of the Year honoree of the American Boxing Writers Association to help him in nhis build up program. “He (Marcial) is a good kid. Very polite, mature, and professional. And boy can he fight!" Sternburg told this writer as told by Roach, also the guy responsible for another Filipino Manny Pacquiao’s rise to become 12-time world champion in eight weight divisions. Marcial’s December 17 debut, incidentally, coincides with the now senator’s 42nd birthday . Marcial, who signed with PBC and Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao's MP Promotions, has been unashamed admitting he is following in Pacman's footsteps. Prizefighters are now allowed to compete in the Olympics and this opened the gates the Roach-owned seta shop to serve as a "one-stop shop" for Marcial's preparations for professional and Olympic glory. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Eddie Alinea of The Manila Times.  |
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