Boxing at the Summer Games of the XXXII Olympiad, Tokyo

Round 2

Palaam is jabbing into the guard, then attempting to split it with mighty right uppercuts from down by his knees, and then shoving out against it with both arms to back Yafai off and reset. Yafai jabbing his way in but eats a few left hooks upside the head. Yafai scores with a nice 1-2 but Palaam answers with body shots and clubbing rights up top. Yafai missing the jab as Palaam ducks in but then finding him with the left cross. Both tiring a bit from the nonstop torrid pace, and winging arm punches in the pocket, both of their accuracy dipping more for that reason than anything either is bringing defensively aside from just keeping their hands up and chins down. Palaam muscling his way in, absorbing some flush lefts and putting in work, seizing this round on activity IMO.

10-9 Palaam, close

19-18 Yafai

 

Judges in the second went 4-1 in favor of Yafai. (for a total array of 20-18x4, 19-19 x1 heading into the final)

 

Round 3

Palaam is following; Yafai on his bike, then bending in and bodying up against Palaam when he gets close. Very few shots gotten off through ninety seconds, although Palaam has tried a few combos to pin Yafai down in a corner, nothing doing. Nice right uppercut on the breadbasket and cuffing left hook behind the temple by Palaam, causing Yafai to stagger slightly, but he rights the ship and begins to skate clockwise around the ring. Palaam rushes him into the ropes hammering down at him but Yafai busts loose with a left uppercut on the flat of the chin. Yafai with pot shot combinations dancing around Palaam, who is grazing him with lunging power shots.

10-9 Yafai, close

29-27 Yafai

 

Official cards:

29-28 x4
28-29

SD for Galal Yafai

 

No shame for the Pinoy there, respectable silver medal effort - but Yafai just the better man today and put in a performance befitting an Olympic champion with his craftiness and punching technique.

 

Wait, so women's rounds in the Olympics are three minutes, like men's?

(kinda telling on myself here, nope have not watched any )

I can see why pro females are so annoyed with the outdated practice of having theirs be 2". Just no reason for it.

 

Oleksandr Khyzhniak (UKR) vs. Hebert Souza (BRA), middleweight/75kg gold final

 

Gonna be honest, I am in the camp that felt that Khyzhniak fought quite well but should not have gotten the nod over Marcial.

Should be a relative cake walk for gold here, consequently, as Marcial > Souza from all I've seen of both.

 

Round 1

They clasp together and both start in with rabbit punches in bunches straight away. When they separate the cleaner stuff is from Souza, carrying his arms low and throwing ambush uppercuts and overhands as the Ukrainian presses in. Body shots with the free hand by Khyzhniak when they clinch. Souza lies in wait by the corner, ducking and twisting away toward his rear leg, denying Khyzhniak a clear target coming in, and spring-loading a counter uppercut while uncoiling to face him square. Khyzhniak throwing away jabs and flailing up top with heavy rights, hitting shoulder or nape but not legal scoring areas. Khyzhniak starts to get his timing down by incorporating the jab into his pressuring routine, poking Souza in the chest with it and then slicing in roundhouse rights on the body.

10-9 Khyzhniak, close

 

Judges go Khyzhniak's way, 5-0.

 

Round 2

Khyzhniak is Dempsey-shifting on the way in, grinding his elbows out into the Brazilian's chest and throat and then hooking at his chin with both hands, forcing him to flee or clinch. Souza is looking for that right uppercut counter but Khyzhniak is just bulling straight through, messing up his timing. Khyzhniak warned for clubbing down with rabbit punches in the clinch, but Souza is bending pretty low and probably deserves to be warned himself. Lots of holding. Khyzhniak just lowering his head and throwing no-look ascending bombs. Souza finally finds the counter uppercut and scores it clean.

10-9 Khyzhniak

20-18 Khyzhniak

 

Round 3

More holding, and Souza ends up behind Khyzhniak in the Heimlich maneuver position somehow. Ref getting annoyed. Souza with several uppercuts chipping away on the chest of Khyzhniak as their arms on the other side remain knotted up with the ref encouraging a break. Souza catches a jab amd traps Khyzhniak's left between his cheek and shoulderblade by cricking his neck, with Khyzhniak pulling a cocked & ready right hand and looking at the ref for help. Souza ordered to let go. Time in. Can-opener shots with both hands by Khyzhniak, putting full power on them, swinging himself wildly off-balance as he misses. Souza is warned repeatedly for clinching and told to take a full step back when they reset when he orders breaks from now on. MOOT POINT AS THERE WILL NEVER BE ANOTHER CLINCH OR BREAK IN THIS ONE, AS SOUZA MOMENTARILY SWITCHES KHYZHNIAK'S LIGHTS OUT WITH A MONSTER CHECK LEFT HOOK! Khyzhniak down incredibly hard, but shoots right back up to argue with the ref, who immediately waved it off.

KO3!!!

 

Wow...that's...wow.

I can of course see both sides of the inevitable controversy here. Khyzhniak was dominant for much of the match, and did get up instantly and was clearly lucid and eager to continue. On the other hand, it was a hellacious shot...and one-hitter come from behind kayos are not only part of the fabric of tradition in this sport, they rank among its most exciting and legndary moments.

And there is the point to be made that Khyzhniak was there on borrowed time, and that it should have been Marcial vs. Sousa in the finals, with the Filipino likely getting the gold.

 

Whoops, actually Sousa not Souza. Oh well, I put that spelling in a lot of posts and not being a mod anymore don't want to muddy them up with the 'last edited by' tracer, so...let it ride.

 

Now clicking fast-forward to see the medal presentation impatiently to see if Khyzhniak was still being salty about it on the podium, or if he summoned up some maturity & class.