SEA Games: Paalam gets back at 2017 tormentor, enters light flyweight final

Carlos Paalam hurdles his first assignment in the Southeast Asian Games boxing. Photo by Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net

MANILA, Philippines—Carlo Paalam found his retribution after scoring a unanimous decision win over Malaysia’s Muhamad Redzuan, 5-0, to barge into boxing men’s light flyweight final in the 2019 Southeast Asian Games Friday at PICC Forum.

Redzuan was the same boxer who eliminated Paalam in the 2017 SEA Games and relegated the 21-year-old Filipino to a bronze medal finish.

With vengeance in mind, Paalam showcased his fire early on in their semifinals match, knocking down Redzuan in the early part of the first round.

Paalam’s offense slowed down a bit in the second round but his defense was still impenetrable as he dodged and blocked whatever Redzuan mustered.

“Yes, I was pumped up for this fight because I wanted to avenge my loss,” said Paalam in Filipino. “But we don’t hold the judges’ decision so what I did was do my part and train hard for this fight.”

“I just implemented our game plan wisely because he beat me in Malaysia in my first SEA Games. The result was cooked up so I wanted to get back at him.”

In the first fight of the day’s matches, the Philippines’ Aira Villegas lost to Thailand’s Nilawan Techasuep in the women’s bantamweight semifinals.