Eumir Marcial started attacking right away and his aggressiveness enabled him to win his first professional boxing match yesterday.
The 25-year-old Marcial was dominant as he posted a unanimous decision victory over American boxer Andrew Whitfield.
All three judges, Don De Verges, Ron Scott Stevens and Damian Walton scored the bout, 40-36, for Marcial when action ended at the Shrine Exposition Center in Los Angeles (Thursday morning in Manila).
The fury of Marcial’s blows started to show when Whitfield’s right eye started to close by the second round.
“Unang round pa lang tinamaan ako. Naramdaman ko yung suntok niya kasi mas manipis ang gloves sa pro na 10oz. Sa amateur kasi 12oz ang gamit namin,” said Marcial after the fight.
Marcial continued pounding on Whitfield’s eye which was almost completely closed by the third round.
“Siguro talagang pinaghandaan niya ako kasi three months ago, alam na niya yung laban. Tsaka siguro matagal ako walang training dahil sa pandemic kaya struggle din ako na makuha yung tamang kondisyon,” said Marcial.
This was Marcial’s first win as a professional and gave him a 1-0 record in the middleweight division.
Whitfield, who is from Idaho, now has a 3-2 slate.
“Matagal ako walang training dahil sa pandemic kaya struggle din ako na makuha yung tamang kondisyon,” said Marcial.
With legendary trainer Freddie Roach manning his corner, Marcial started out with a flurry of blows with his left hand as he connected with straights to Whitfield’s head and mid-section.
Whitfield reeled from the succession of blows as Marcial landed 11 clean punches in the first minute of the fight.
Marcial’s success in his first outing as a pro boosted his confidence as he prepares for the Tokyo Olympics.