BUSTO ARSIZIO, Italy – Team USA won four more bouts during the fifth day of boxing at the 2024 Olympic Games World Qualifying Tournament at the E-Work Arena in Busto Arsizio, Italy.
Shera Mae Patricio (Waianae, Hawaii) kicked off the day for the Americans as she went head-to-head with Angel Yris Lopez of Puerto Rico. Patricio came out of the gates firing, as she was eager to get her opportunity to step into the ring after receiving an opening-round bye. She used numerous combinations and bodywork to overwhelm her opponent and take all five judges’ cards at the end of the round.
The Hawaiian never let up and kept attacking through the remaining two rounds, resulting in a 3-2 second round in her favor before a 5-0 final round to take the bout unanimously. Patricio will return to action on March 9 to face Argentina’s Sofia Micaela Robles.
“I feel so good as I got my first fight out the way,” Patricio stated after picking up her second-round win. “I was so eager to fight since day one, but I have two more to go, and the job is not finished.”
The second session saw 57 kg boxer Alyssa Mendoza (Caldwell, Idaho) step into the ring for her second fight, hoping to pick up Team USA’s ninth win. Facing Satsuki Yoshizawa from Japan, Mendoza opened the first round by hitting multiple counter punches on Yoshiza, causing a light nosebleed. However, the judges still scored it 3-2 in favor of Yoshiza.
Mendoza was told she was down after the round, making her dig deep, as she did not want her tournament run to end and feel the pain she felt from her loss at the Santiago 2023 Pan American Games.
“I picked it up after Coach (Billy Walsh) told me I was down after the first round,” Mendoza stated. “I knew her nose was bleeding and kept attacking that area.”
The featherweight landed multiple punches early in the second round, causing the Japanese boxer’s nose to continue to bleed as the referee walked her to the ringside doctor. The fight was stopped, and Mendoza did enough in the opening minute to earn the deciding judges’ vote to take the 3-2 split decision. She will return to the ring tomorrow for her match-up with Morocco’s Nisrine Amine, the 2023 African Continental Championships bronze medalist.
Team USA picked up their third win of the day, with Omari Jones (Orlando, Fla.) winning by unanimous decision over Mohamed Rachem of Belgium.
Jones controlled the fight throughout all three rounds, using his strong jab to cruise to victory and advance to the next round of competition against Iran’s Moslem Maghsoudi Mal Amiri.“All glory to God for another victory,” said Jones after his decision. “I am just taking it day by day, and you will see me next time I fight.”
The day concluded with heavyweight Jamar Talley (Camden, N.J.) taking to the ring for the first time of the tournament, and he did not disappoint.
Talley dominated from the start of the bout against Morocco’s Ayoub Maanni, even giving his opponent a standing eight count in the first minute of the opening round to jump out to a 5-0 lead.
His dominance continued, and he overpowered his opponent to win unanimously and advance to face Narek Manasyan of Armenia on Saturday.
“I got the first one underway, and it was a good win to start the tournament,” stated Talley. “I am just going to get better and sharper as the tournament continues.”
Robby “Rahim” Gonzales (Las Vegas, Nev.) will join Mendoza during tomorrow’s sessions. The 2021 World Champion will face Andrej Csernez of Slovakia, the 2019 European Games bronze medalist.
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ABOUT USA BOXING: The mission of USA Boxing shall be to promote and grow Olympic-style amateur boxing in the United States and to inspire the tireless pursuit of Olympic gold and enable athletes and coaches to achieve sustained competitive excellence. Additionally, USA Boxing endeavors to teach all participants the character, confidence and focus they need to become resilient and diverse champions, both in and out of the ring. USA Boxing is one team, one nation, going for gold!
