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Philippines, 16 Aug 2022 |
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Eumir Felix Marcial The Next Big Thing in PH Boxing By Teodoro Medina Reynoso PhilBoxing.com Sat, 26 Mar 2022  Marcial. Literally and figuratively, Eumir Felix Marcial could be the next big thing in Philippine boxing. Gauging on how his present handlers and benefactors have been moving him along after his bronze medal finish in the last Tokyo Olympics and how conscious as well as conspicuous have been their immediate and long term planning, the prospects and potentials of Marcial making an even bigger mark in Philippine boxing in the coming years remain bright. Marcial last saw action as amateur in the reset 2020 Tokyo Olympics where he advanced as far as the semifinals losing to then reigning world champion and top seed Oleksander Khrysniak of Kazakhstan via split decision to settle for the bronze. Curiously, an authoritative US publication had earlier predicted the two to meet for the gold. Khrysniak was upset in the finals by Brazil's Herbert Conceicao Sousa who stopped the pressure volume punching Ukrainian. On the way to the semis, Marcial himself had steamrolled his opposition, including Armenia's Arman Darchinyan, nephew of former world pro boxing titlist Vicious Vic Darchinyan, whom he knocked out in the very first round after earlier stopping Algeria's Younes Nemouchi. After clinching his slot for Tokyo by dominating the pre Olympics qualifiers in Jordan, Marcial has been prodded to turn professional in 2020 with the holding of the Games still hanging in the balance. Marcial won his pro debut by defeating American Andrew Whitfield in four rounds in the US. Marcial is reportedly set for his ring return in the professional ranks this coming April 9. In his second pro outing, Marcial will fight for the first time in Las Vegas against New Jersey native Isiah Hart in a six rounder at the Theater at Virgin Hotel underneath the Erickson Lubin vs Sebastian Fundora main event bout put up by the famed Tom G Brown Promotions. He will be up against a foe who has thus far, a 6-1-2 record with 4 KO wins. In a statement, Marcial said he is excited to return to his professional career and "to be fighting in Viva Las Vegas where I now live and train, is a great way to get things going again." He said he is very comfortable training under the guidance of his boxing coach Jorge Capetillo and his strength and conditioning coach Angel "Memo" Heredia as he expressed gratitude to Senator Manny Pacquiao, MP Promotions and the Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) for their support. Definitely, a good sign is that his handlers are not rushing him in his pro career and there is no need to. Things favoring Marcial are his age, at 27 he is still young, and despite that, he has already long years and experience at top level international boxing competitions (he started his amateur career as a youth boxer in 2011 yet) and his world class skills that could yet still improved under professional coaching and guidance. The factor of the slow turnover lately of amateur standouts to the pros especially in the higher weight classes should also be considered. The most recent Olympic medalists to make good at the pros at middleweight are products of the 2010 Games yet and only Japanese gold medal winner Ryota Murata has succeeded in winning a world pro boxing championship. Murata, the WBA titlist is set to meet current IBF titleholder Gennady Golovkin, another medalist in an earlier Olympics, in a unification this year. Fact is, Tokyo gold medalist Herbert Souza has yet to make his professional debut while Marcial's other contemporaries including Khrysniak, Russian Gleb Bakshi and Kazakhstan's Amankul Abilkhan seemingly have no plans to turn professional. Most likely, these contemporaries including Arman Darchinyan who has joined the paid ranks in 2019 and has one pro win, are keeping open their options and linger around for the next Olympics which is just two or three years away. Like them, it is best for Marcial and his handlers not to rush head on to the pros particularly in the very loaded middleweight class populated by grizzled veteran professionals. Kazakhstan's Tursynbay Khulamet, the man Marcial met and beat in the 2019 World Amateur Boxing Championship's middleweight semifinals (earning for him the silver as Eumir lost to Gleb Bakshi in the finals) immediately turned pro and fought as a super welterweight which should be an advantage. But his handlers rushed him in the pros which was initially successful as he won the WBC International belt in the 154 lbs class in his second pro bout. But his pro career might be over in just four fights as in his last bout, he was unseated by knockout by Pacquiao's contemporary, Juan Carlos Abreau. Note that Khulamet was among the very few fighters to have beaten Khrysniak in the amateurs. Other notable Marcial amateur contemporaries who are now in the pros include another Kazakh Danniyar Yesseleunov and Uzbekistan's Israil Madrimov both fighting below middleweight have only been lately making waves but are not a cinch in the loaded welterweight and super welterweight classes. Marcial should maintain fighting professionally as integral part of his preparations for the next Olympics where his chances of bagging the elusive boxing gold would be enormously enhanced. Being big in boxing, particularly in Philippine Boxing does not mean following the footsteps of our famously successful fighters in the professional ranks as Manny Pacquiao which is impossible to do. That could also be accomplished by winning the Philippines first Olympic boxing gold and in the middleweight yet. The author Teodoro Medina Reynoso is a veteran boxing radio talk show host living in the Philippines. He can be reached at teddyreynoso@yahoo.com and by phone 09215309477. Click here to view a list of other articles written by Teodoro Medina Reynoso.  |
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