FLYWEIGHT VIOLITO Payla tries to move closer to an Olympic berth today when he tangles with Khalid Said of England in the round-of-32 of the AIBA World Boxing Championships Chicago 2007 in Illinois.
Payla, one of the three surviving boxers of the seven-man RP-PLDT Smart Boxing Team, will come into the ring carrying the momentum of his Referee Stopped Contest-Compulsary Count Limit (RSC-CCL) victory over Andrew Selby of Wales in the third round of their preliminary round bout last Friday.
Said reached the round-of-32 by beating Derenk Gizhlaryan of Asrmenia, 22-10.
The two other Filipinos ? light flyweight Harry Ta?amor and lightweight Genebert Basadre ? see action tomorrow.
Ta?amor, the two-time World Championships bronze medalist who drew a preliminary round bye, goes up against Mohammed Nasir of Wales while Basadre, who scored a 19-13 win over Ognyan Kolev of Bulgaria, meets Faraj Al Matbolif of Jordan.
Payla, Ta?amor and Basadre need two more victories to earn tickets to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
??I?m going to give it my best shot,?? said Payla after the team practice.
??Payla and Basadre are in good condition. We?re coming to the fights with confidence,?? said head coach Pat Gaspi.
Already out of contention for Olympic slots are bantamweight Joan Tipon, featherweight Charly Suarez, light welterweight Delfin Boholst and welterweight Wilfredo Lopez who all lsot their preliminary round bouts.
??We?re doing everything to make the Olympics. Our remaining boxers know their missions very well,?? said Gaspi.
