EUMIR Marcial isn’t taking the next flight out of California to Nagoya, Japan for the 20th Asian Games.
After a serious talk with the Olympic bronze medalist following his third round knockout of Omar Ulises Huerta in San Diego, the Association of Boxing Alliances in the Philippines thought it best for the 30-year-old Marcial not to proceed with the plan to box in the quadrennial meet at the Aichi Prefecture.
READ: Eumir Marcial breaks open Asiad door with 3rd-round KO of Huerta
ABAP president Marcus Jarwin Manalo said it is in the best interest of Marcial – physically, most especially – to just stay in the US and skip the Asiad despite the 30-year-old fighter being one of the country’s top medal prospects.
“I spoke to Eumir right after winning his professional fight earlier. After carefully considering the situation, Eumir and I agreed that it would be better to skip the Asian Games,” said Manalo from Nagoya, Japan.
"We sincerely hope for understanding that this decision was made with Eumir's best interests in mind. His commitment to Philippine boxing and to representing the country has never been in question."
The task, according to Manalo, a former sports psychologist professor, will certainly take a toll on Marcia;'s physical well-being.
"It would be very hard for him to immediately transition from a professional fight in the U.S. into long distance travel to Nagoya with a 16-hour time difference, and then into another high-level boxing competition with such a short recovert period," said the ABAP chief.
"Boxing is a physically demanding and inherently risky sport, and adequate time to rest and recover is extremely important. And we do not want to compromise Eumir's health and safety because of the tight timeline."
What went before
ABAP and Marcial earlier spoke about the Zamboanga City native joining the boxing team in Japan should he take care of business early against Huerta in their eight-round middlweight bout at the Pechanga Arena.
The Filipino took just three rounds to finish off his 30-year-old American-Mexican opponent, decking him to the canvas with a solid counter right from which Huerta never recovered for a knockout win for Marcial in his first U.S.-televised fight.
Marcial kept his undefeated record at 8-0 (5 KOs) and appeared ready to hop in to the next plane bound for Nagoya.
"Eumir himself was very much looking forward to the opportunity to represent the flag once again. This is therefore a difficult decision for everyone involved," said Manalo.
"However, representing the Philippines is not only about stepping into the ring. It is also about making responsible decisions that protect our athletes and allow them to have long, healthy careers."
Marcial will now take a brief rest and recover, as Manalo said the Filipino middleweight is looking ahead to representing the country in the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in December in Saudi Arabia.
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