EUMIR Marcial got encouraging words from Sen. Manny Pacquiao after he settled for a bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympic Games.
The 25-year-old Marcial said he got a call from Pacquiao the day after he lost to Oleksandr Khyzhniak of Ukraine in the semifinal.
“Nakausap ko po si Sen. Manny. Sobrang nainspired ako at na-cheer-up ako dahil masaya si Senator. Sabi niya, good job at siyempre, ‘yung advice niya sa akin, sobrang ganda,” said Marcial in an interview with Radyo Pilipinas.
“As a boxer, malaking bagay po ‘yung napapayuhan at mabigyan ng advice ng ating Pambansang Kamao na si Senator Manny,” he added.
Pacquiao heads MP Promotions where Marcial is one of his fighters. Now a professional fighter, Marcial competed in the Tokyo Olympics in his bid to win a gold.
Even though he is preparing for his bout against Errol Spence, Pacquiao has been monitoring the fight of Marcial in Tokyo along with MP Promotions president Sean Gibbons.
Although he came up short, the Filipino middleweight expressed his optimism especially after speaking with Pacquiao as he believes that the loss will only make him a better fighter.
Things to work on
Marcial said Pacquiao pinpointed some room for improvement for the Zamboanga fighter.
“Sabi niya, nagkulang lang talaga sa stamina at sa physical mo. Sabi niya, ang dali lang kalabanin nun. Sabi ni Senator Manny, pag nagkita tayo, aadvisan kita at tuturuan kita,” said Marcial.
“Siguro etong pagkabigo ko, hindi ko man nakuha ‘yung gold sa Tokyo, hindi pa rin ako mawawalan ng pag-asa,” he added.
Get more of the latest sports news & updates on SPIN.ph
NOTICE ON UNAUTHORIZED AND UNLAWFUL USE, PUBLICATION, AND/OR DISSEMINATION OF SPIN.PH CONTENT: Please be notified that any unauthorized and unlawful use, publication, and/or dissemination of Spin.ph’s content and/or materials is a direct violation of its legal and exclusive rights to the same, and shall be subject to appropriate legal action/s.
