Filipino boxers Eumir Felix Marcial and Rogen Ladon advanced to their respective gold medal rounds while James Palicte, Josie Gabuco, and Riza Pasuit fell in the semifinal in the 31st Southeast Asian Games in Hanoi, Vietnam Thursday night, May 19.
The national pugs saw a fair share of ups and downs at the Bac Ninh Gymnasium as Marcial dominated Thai foe Peerapat Yeasungnoen and won via stoppage (RSC) in the men's middleweight while Ladon also outclassed Thai opponent Thanarat Saengphet, 4-1, in the men's flyweight category.
Both Marcial and Ladon, both assured of a silver medal, are just a win away from successfully defending their respective SEA Games titles.
Marcial dominated Yeasungnoen from the get-go and unloaded powerful body shots to push back the Thai.
The Tokyo Olympian connected a hefty body shot before dominating the Thai with crisp combinations as the referee had to intervene due to lack of defense coming from Yeasunonen and halt the match in the second round.
Ladon, for his part, bucked his slow start and stepped on the gas in the second and third rounds to turn back Saengphet with his precise counter-punching and short jabs.
Meanwhile, Palicte, the reigning light welterweight regional champion, seemed to lose steam in the third round as Indonesian contender Farrand Papendang capitalized on the situation and pulled off an upset 4-1 win.
Papendang landed powerful combinations the entire third round when Palicte, who suddenly became stagnant and inactive, seemed to fall down on his knees and went on the defensive stance.
Gabuco also absorbed a 3-2 loss at the hands of Thailand's Chuthamat Raksat as the third round slump proved to be costly for the Filipina, who won the gold medal in the light flyweight division in 2019 edition here in the Philippines.
Pasuit, the 2019 SEAG lightweight silver medalist, couldn't land proper punches against a taller opponent in home bet Vuong Thi Vy of Vietnam in the 54-57kg class.
Vuong was too much for Pasuit as the Vietnamese utilized height advantage to land clearer blows and counter-punches in the entirety of the match en route to a unanimous 5-0 win.
Palicte, Gabuco, and Pasuit were also assure of bronze medals.
Reigning featherweight gold medalist Nesthy Petecio, fellow Tokyo Olympian of Marcial, will continue the national team's campaign on Friday, May 20 in the semifinal round.