3 Pinoy boxers advance to final

KUALA LUMPUR – Veterans Mario Fernandez and Eumir Felix Marcial and new discovery Fil-British John Tupas Marvin disposed of their rivals without letup and without mercy as they secured the three projected gold medals berths yesterday at the close of the semifinals of the Southeast Asian Games boxing competitions at the Malaysian International Trade and Exhibition Center here yesterday.

Fernandez put to work his style as a counter-puncher and scored a clinical 5-0 victory over Nat Siek Nin of Cambodia in the bantamweight division, scoring heavily with jabs and blows to the head and getting the better of exchanges to gain the nod of all five judges.

“When Ian lost to the Thai, I decided that I would win this one convincingly,” said Fernandez who fought the Cambodian half an hour after Ian Clark Bautista bowed to Thai Tanes Ongjunta by the same score in the flyweight division.

The referee gave the Cambodian a standing 8-count in the first round after Fernandez connected with a hard right.

Fernandez dominated the Cambodian in the second round and completely outclassed him in the third to win the unanimous decision of all judges.

Marcial took the shorter route, leaving nothing to chance as he overpowered Indran Rama Krishnan of host Malaysia right at the start. He staggered the Malaysian twice and connected a fast one that took the daylight out of the Malaysian, prompting the referee to stop the fight in the first round by RSCCCL (referee-stopped contest under the compulsory-count-limit rule).

Marvin, a newcomer whom boxing officials referred to as their secret weapon and listed as Tupas, his mother’s famly name, in the official lineup, lived up to his billing as the future of Philippine boxing in the higher division as he scored a 5-0 win over Thailand’s tough Anavat Thonkrawthok in the light-heavyweight division.

The win over the Thai was also a revenge of sorts for the Philippine squad after Thai Wuttichai Masuk whipped Charly Suarez, 5-0, in the light welterweight division in a loss not to the liking of Filipino sports officials. They thought Suarez was the more aggressive fighter while the taller Thai resorted to backpedalling to prevent the Filipino from engaging him in a fight at close range.

Thailand is sending five bets to the finals and the Philippines three, with two of them facing off for the title.

Fernandez trades punches with Thai champion Chatchai Butdee for the gold in the bantamweight class, while Marcial collides with Pathomsak Kuttiya in the gold medal match of the middleweight division.

Marvin, on the other hand, fights Adloi Hafidz Mohd Pauzin and the Malaysian crowd.