By Romeo Braceros Jr.
 

At Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, Olympic bronze medalist Eumir Marcial overcame a cut above his right eye to defeat opponent Steven Pichardo in a straightforward, unanimous decision.

Pichardo (8-3-1, 2 KOs), who fought on the untelevised undercard of the Sebastian Fundora vs. Carlos Ocampo card, which Showtime Championship Boxing televised, was put on the defensive for the majority of the fight by Marcial (3-0, 1 knockout), who represented the Philippines at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo.

Marcial's vision was impaired the entire time due to the cut brought on by an unintentional head collision in the second round.

It was the most recent of several early obstacles Marcial had to overcome in his career.

After a near call against Isiah Hart in April, where he was felled three times before halting the veteran in round four, Marcial had not fought for six months.

Before the Tokyo Olympics, Marcial faced Andrew Whitfield, who proved to be a harder opponent than he had anticipated for his professional debut.

Nevertheless, Marcial impressed head trainer Jorge Capetillo with his body punching and uppercut usage.

MP Promotions, which retired boxing legend Manny Pacquiao runs, is the promoter of Marcial. In the Philippine Air Force, he holds the rank of sergeant.

Pichardo, a 26-year-old from Gardena, California, has already suffered two straight losses.