By Leobert Julian A. de la Peña
Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Eumir Marcial pulled off an emphatic fourth-round knockout victory over Thoedsak Sinam of Thailand during his first-ever professional home bout on March 23, 2024, at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate, Manila.
It was an electrifying win for the Filipino rising star after living up to the expectations of his kababayans, showcasing his improved boxing arsenal during their super-middleweight boxing showdown.
After fighting his previous fights in Texas and California, Marcial was finally in familiar territory and received a warm ovation soon as the bell rang in the first round.
Marcial immediately buckled to work as early as the first round after landing several snappy jabs that disrupted Sinam’s aggression and ring control.
Due to the heavy punishment Marcial dealt him in the opening minutes, Sinam decided to hold back and play the counter-punching strategy in the following round.
However, that move didn’t benefit the more experienced Thai pug as Marcial turned on the jets and was even busier with his jabs while mixing it up with an uppercut-straight combination.
It was all Marcial in the third round as he replicated his disciplined approach, cutting Sinam’s distance with his jabs and was wise to backpedal when the Thai visitor hounded him with pressure.
The golden moment for Marcial came in the fourth round after he found a perfect opening to send in the final blow.
At the 1:33 mark of the fourth frame, Marcial landed a well-calculated left uppercut punch that sent Sinam down to the canvas.
Marcial snuck in the match-clinching punch after a back-and-forth sequence. Seconds after he noticed that Sinam let his guard down following an exhausting exchange, the Filipino boxer unleashed the vicious uppercut to seal the deal.
With the jaw-dropping victory, Marcial just extended his undefeated professional boxing streak to five wins, three knockouts, still without a loss. On the other hand, Sinam fell to a disappointing 23 wins, 14 losses, and seven knockouts.
