Eumir Marcial hurts Isiah Hart in the fourth round of their middleweight bout in Las Vegas. CONTRIBUTED PHOTO
MANILA, Philippines — Fresh from his first professional knockout victory, Eumir Marcial will leave Las Vegas on Wednesday to return to the country ahead of the the boxing national team build-up for the 31st Southeast Asian Games.
The 2021 middleweight Olympic Bronze medalist is set for his fourth SEA Games appearance in Hanoi, Vietnam in May after winning gold medals in 2015, 2017, and 2019.
Marcial beat Isiah Hart (6-3-1, 4 KOs) via technical knockout at the 47-second mark of the fourth round after getting knocked down thrice to earn his second professional win last Saturday.
The Zamboanga native will rest in the country for a few days before flying to Thailand for the national team training camp for the biennial meet, which will be his first step gearing up to qualify for the 2024 Olympic team.
“I was happy that I won Saturday night against Isiah Hart. I need to go back to the drawing board and fix a few things and I will be back stronger,” said Marcial. “I look to take my fourth straight gold medal. It takes hard work to do that and I promise my full commitment to the Philippines in the upcoming SEA Games.”
MP Promotions president Sean Gibbons vowed to continue their support for Marcial in his quest for a fourth consecutive SEA Games gold medal, which he considers a great build-up for another pro fight either in July or August
“I am so proud of how Eumir came back from adversity in the first few rounds and came on to stop Isiah Hart in the fourth round. It was a great learning lesson. We will make a few changes and then move on to bigger things,” he said.
“Also, I support Eumir in his quest to win his fourth consecutive Sea Games gold medal. It is a great way to prepare for his third pro fight in July or August.”