Fiji boxer Winston Hill was too powerful for his Vanuatu opponent Naiu Martin beating him on points in their 69kg division fight in Port Vila, Vanuatu last night.
Hill's crafty footwork helped him win the fight after both boxers had a good start and threw some powerful shots at each other. However, Hill opted to move around the ring and then launched surprise attacks on his opponent.
"Boxing is a sport where anything can happen and for me I came really prepared to face Vanuatu's best and he was good," Hill said after the fight.
"He was fight fit and ready and so was I in the fight."
Hill had represented Fiji at the 2016 Olympic Games and with the win he has become the first Fijian boxer to win his fight after all the previous boxers lost earlier in the day.
"I am confident to win a gold medal," he added.
"I was able to land more clear punches and showed more ring dominance and used the ring which played a big role in the win.
"I saw him being flat footed and a little bit difficult to move off the mark and I adapted the game plan of being more mobile and moving around the ring which paid off," Hill said.
Meanwhile, Fiji's fight for a top place finish at the Pacific Mini Games in Vanuatu has been hit with a low blow when sprinter Aaron Powell was disqualified after winning the 100 metres final on Tuesday night.
This continued when Team Fiji boxing coach, Pauliasi Ratu, did not hold back his frustration against the decision to award the middleweight 75 kilogram win on Tuesday night to Vanuatu's Sivas Lui instead of Josefa Ravudi Jr.
Ravudi Jr lost on points despite his strong outing in the second and the third round of the match.
"I am very disappointed with the decision by the judges," Ratu, a former champion, he said.
"I do not know how the points were given to the Vanautu boxer, Sivasi Lui because we thought Jo was the winner at the end of the match.
"That boxer was not even punching. He was just padding Joe and that was not even a punch. I do not understand what happened."
In the 60kg category, Pauliasi Ratu Jr lost to Nuuull Mose of Samoa on points.
"Pau was good, but in the later round, he was exhausted," he said.
"It was their last fights where they had to win to be in contention.
"The major challenges I faced is that we did everything right, but it was the boys who did not.
Photo source FBC