EUMIR Marcial may have missed a shot at another medal finish in the coming 20th Asian Games.
But in return, he gets to fight live for the first time before a huge U.S. TV audience.
DAZN Worldwide and TNT are set to air Marcial’s eighth pro fight against Omar Ulises Huerta in a 10-round middleweight match that serves as undercard to the WBC super-lightweight title contest between Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz and Nestor Bravo.
The fight card is promoted by Premier Boxing Champion and set on Sept. 19 at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California.
“This is going to be the most important fight in his pro career so far, as he has never been seen in U.S. television before,” said international matchmaker Sean Gibbons of Viva Promotions.
“Everybody will be watching him closely, so he must look absolutely great. It’s going to be a big moment.”
Marcial will stake his WBC middleweight international belt in the fight.
The U.S. television debut of the 30-year-old Marcial comes at the expense of giving up his slot in the Philippine boxing team bound for the Asiad in next month.
A bronze medalist in the Tokyo Olympics, Marcial was entered in the 80 kg class (light-heavyweight) in the quadrennial showcase, the same division where he took home a silver medal in the 2022 edition.
But since his pro bout is in close proximity with the competitions in Nagoya, Japan, the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines deemed it fit to leave him behind.
Eumir's pro career
Marcial is so far 7-0 as a pro, including 4 KOs. He is coming off a majority decision win against Eddy Colmenares of Venezuela in the undercard of the 50th year anniversary of the Thrilla in Manila last year at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.
His last stint with the national team came in the recent Bangkok Southeast Asian Games where he emerged as the lone Filipino boxer to win gold at light-heavyweight.
Huerta of San Diego holds a 15-1-1 win-loss-draw record with 13 knockouts.
“This fight is going to be a war, as both fighters are known for their high knockout prowess. I believe Eumir will treat this fight seriously, as we are planning to give him another fight by December once he wins this one before heading for a world title next year,” Gibbons said.
“That is an opportunity he will not waste for sure.”
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