JAKARTA -- Filipino boxers scored a clean sweep as Carlo Paalam and Eumir Marcial moved into the quarterfinals with impressive wins Monday, the final day of preliminaries in the boxing competitions of the 2018 Asian Games.
Paalam scored a clear-cut unanimous decision while Marcial closed the show in style with a dominant second-round stoppage of Ng Kuok Kun of Macao.
Heading into the 2018 Asian Games, Paalam was tabbed as one of the boxers to watch. Although he was an unknown a couple of years back, he rose through the rankings because of his improvement largely based on his speed and ability to throw punches in bunches.
The Filipino stylist had to wait to know who his opponent was in the Round of 16 as Tu Powei had to go through the Round of 32 to move forward. He defeated Mohibullah of Indonesia 4-1 but Paalam proved to be a far tougher opponent.
"I was ready for whoever I had to face because I prepared hard for the Asian Games like the rest of my teammates so I felt I was ready," Paalam said. "I know Tu was also a good boxer. I wanted to read his style first and adjust because I didn't want to rush anything."
From the opening bell, Paalam fought with the perfect mix of aggression and style. As he was much faster than Tu, the Filipino was able to unleash quick jab-straight and jab-straight-hooks throughout the match. Sensing that the judges in Jakarta were putting a premium on the volume of punches, Paalam let his fists fly against his opponent from Chinese Taipei.
Paalam won via unanimous decision with scores of 30-26, 30-27 thrice, and 29-28.
"I'm just happy that I won. Even if I was a little winded near the end, I still threw punches," said Paalam. "I'm happy that I'm one of the boxers to watch in my weight class. When I perform on top of the ring, I do it to thank all of those who have helped us along the way. This win is for them."
If Paalam showed off his speed, Marcial, on the other end, showed off his vaunted power as he scored an early standing-eight count against Ng. He was adamant about not letting the judges decide his fate as he floored his opponent with a wicked three-punch combination early in Round 2.
Marcial would score two more standing-eight counts to end the bout prematurely.
He joined Paalam and Rogen Ladon who will all be gunning for at least a bronze in their next fight.