Eumir Marcial decimated Thoedsak Sinam of Thailand in his homecoming bout on Saturday, March 23, at Ninoy Aquino Stadium in Malate, Manila. 

Next stop, the 2024 Paris Olympics.

Marcial’s thunderous left uppercut found Sinam’s chin, sending the Thai to the realm of ghosts and shadows. There was a delayed reaction when the blow connected, but Sinam’s legs eventually gave out as he hit the canvas.

He was given a chance to stand back up, but referee Danrex Tapdasan reached the count of 10 at the 1:33 mark of the fourth.

Chin’s the target

“If you noticed, in the first and second rounds, I was trying to land the uppercut on his chin, instead of his body,” Marcial told reporters in the post-fight scrum. “His chin was my target.” 

“I tried it twice in round two then told myself I would maintain the jab,” he said. “I knew it was only a matter of time before I caught him with my uppercut.”

“I was really satisfied with the result because that was our plan. We were hoping to end the fight before the fourth round,” he added,

It was sweet for the Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist, but what made it sweeter, according to Marcial, is that he was able to put on a free show in front of his compatriots.

“I’m very thankful to every Filipino who went here tonight,” said Marcial, addressing his fans. “I didn’t expect that it would feel this amazing to see my kababayans cheering me on.”

The victory boosted Marcial’s professional record to a spotless 5-0 with three knockouts.

Excellent jab

No doubt, the uppercut was the memorable highlight of the night. However, it was Marcial’s steady diet of jabs that set up the win.

Marcial was particularly proud of how he utilized his jab, emphasizing how big of an asset it would be on the Olympic stage.

“This was the plan coach DJ [Zamora] and I have been working on,” revealed the Zamboangueño. “We really wanted to use more jabs because when I get to the US to train, my partners there are excellent at jabbing.”

“I couldn’t connect very well when they were jabbing me. So my coach told me, this is what we needed to work on. More jabs and then the knockout will come to us.”

The longtime Philippine national athlete will compete in a new weight class of 81 kilograms in the upcoming Olympics. And although he’s comfortable fighting in this new division, Marcial expects to be the smaller fighter against most of his opponents.

For this reason, Marcial believes he’d need to be as crafty as ever.

“When it comes to the Olympics, you can see the Cubans, the Central Americans and the Latin Americans, when they fight, they use their jabs so well. They can win just by jabbing their opponents the entire three rounds.”

“So that’s what I’ve been practicing. I’m ramping up the volume of my jabs and putting more power behind them because it’s a very effective strategy in amateur fights.”

Olympics-bound

Saturday night’s showcase was nothing but a glimpse of what’s to come for Marcial—Paris 2024, where he will have the opportunity to improve upon his bronze medal finish in Tokyo.

For Marcial, having a pro fight in the books ahead of the Olympics is necessary to avoid ring rust.

“This fight was huge for me because after I qualified [for the Olympics] in the Asian Games last year, I didn’t have any exposure,” Marical said. “It’s one thing just to keep on training and another to have something to really train for.”

In April, Marcial will officially join the Philippine national boxing team for their training camp at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, Colorado. That’s where he will stay before heading straight to France in July.