Saludar brods boost Pinoys’ boxing surge

GUANGZHOU—Boxing’s gold medal mission kicked into overdrive Thursday as the Saludar brothers Victorio and Rey walloped overmatched foes Thursday night in the 16th Asian Games at the Foshan Gymnasium here.

Rey Saludar wasted no time in ending the Asiad stint of Bhutan’s Kinley Gyeltshen, forcing a referee-stopped-contest by knockout with 1:26 left in the first round of their round-of-16 bout.

Saludar, who dropped his foe with a right straight, was leading, 5-0, when the referee waved off the fight.

Before that, he nailed Gyelthshen with two lefts that forced a mandatory standing 8-count in their flyweight (52 kg) bout.

Brother Vic added to the sibling streak, dominating Malaysian Muhammad Fuad Mohd Redzuan in a one-sided light flyweight (49 kg) tussle, 8-1, to also make it to the round of 16.

“I really expected them to breeze through their first fight,” said boxing association executive director Ed Picson.

“They’re young but they’re dependable. Vic plays smartly while Rey is a power puncher.”

The victories hiked boxing’s wins to three, all coming in succession after bantamweight Charly Suarez blew his bid in the first round with a shock defeat to Kazakhstan’s Daniyar Tulegenov.

“We always felt we have a fair-to-good chance in this tournament. It’s just unfortunate that Charly lost in the first round,” added Picson.

The Saludar brothers thus joined welterweight Wilfredo Lopez, who won his opening match in the next round.

“I’m pretty confident in the three of them and I hope that we can add more victories in the coming days,” said Picson, who immediately sent his boxers back to their quarters after their bouts to give them ample rest.

Two more Filipinos are to make their debuts in this quadrennial event, with Delfin Boholst finally getting a chance to showcase his bid against dangerous Tuvshinbat Byamba of Mongolia in the light welterweight class (64 kg).

Female pug Annie Albania makes her debut on Nov. 21, when she goes up against Kazakhstan’s Zhaina Shekerbekova in the 48 to 51 kg class (flyweight).

“Annie’s sharp and she’s showing great form in practice,” Picson revealed.