BAC NINH City—Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist Eumir Felix Marcial and former world champion Josie Gabuco step into the ring seeking gold medal round berths in their respective weight divisions in the 31st Southeast Asian Games boxing competitions at the Bac Ninh Stadium.
Marcial drew a bye in the seven-boxer middleweight class, while Gabuco had a quick entry into the women’s light flyweight division where there were only the minimum five entries.
Risa Pasuit also had the luck of the draw in the women’s lightweight category where only five boxers were entered.
The 26-year-old Marcial, already a pro boxer, is favored over 21-year-old Peerapat Yeasungnoen of Thailand, but the Zamboanga City pride said he won’t allow complacency to prevent him from winning a fourth consecutive SEA Games gold medal.
“Overall, he has the advantages plus the experience” Marcial’s teammate featherweight pug Ian Clark Bautista said.
Gabuco, 35 and the world champion in 2012, takes on Thailand’s Chuthamat Raksat, while Pasuit faces Vietnam’s Vuong Thi Vy.
Defending flyweight gold medalist Rogen Ladon, meanwhile, displayed immense power to eliminate Malaysian Muhammad Abdul Qaiyum Bin Ariffin via a 5-0 unanimous decision late Tuesday.
The figher out of Bago City in Negros Occidental advanced to the men’s flyweight semifinals against Thai Thanarat Saengphet on Thursday.
“It’s a great show of dominance,” Bautista said of Ladon. “He’s very scientific when he’s hitting his target accurately and his opponent can’t hit him.”
Bautista, on the other hand, will face Cambodia’s Rangsey Sao in the semifinal round on Friday.
Lightweight James Palicte scored a brutal first round knockout win over Cambodia’s Touch Davit also late Tuesday to arrange a semifinal showdown against Indonesia’s Farrand Papendang on Thursday.
Tokyo Olympic silver medalist Nesthy Petecio battled Myanmar Kay Thwe Nyein in a women’s featherweight quarterfinals fight late Wednesday.