2016 Rio Olympics boxing results: Day 2, morning session

Here’s what went down this morning.

Men’s lightweight (60kg)

Enrico La Cruz (Netherlands) def. Lai Chu-En (Chinese Tapei)

• Scores: 29-28, 30-27, 28-29

Lai was competitive here, and the morning session again got off to a good start with plenty of action, but La Cruz definitely won the first two rounds at least, and that was plenty to advance. La Cruz now moves on to face third-seeded Otgondalai Dorjnyambuu of Mongolia.

Adlan Abdurashidov (Russia) def. Thadius Katua (Papua New Guinea)

• Scores: 29-28, 29-28, 30-27

Katua, the big underdog, really fought his heart out in this one, especially in the third round, when he left what he had in the ring. Abdurashidov was the better fighter, though, better schooled and just more technically sound. But Katua, 19, was great fun to watch and an easy fan favorite, and he showed a lot of promise.

Reda Benbaziz (Algeria) def. Mahmoud Abdelaal (Egypt)

• Scores: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28

Benbaziz dropped Abdelaal in the first round, and then Abdelaal returned the favor late in the third, but it wasn’t enough to get the Egyptian a dramatic comeback win. Knockdowns are not given any particular extra credit on the scoring in the Olympics, either, if you were wondering. It was a good fight with a little drama, and Benbaziz advances.

Men’s welterweight (69kg)

Rayton Okwiri (Kenya) def. Andrey Zamkovoy (Russia)

• Scores: 29-28, 29-28, 28-29

This is noted as a pretty big upset, as Zamkovoy won bronze at the 2012 Olympics and was a solid medal contender again this year. This was also a fairly questionable decision, but it was Okwiri’s activity and pressure that got him the win. Probably the most controversial decision so far.

Byambyn Tüvshinbat (Mongolia) def. Alberto Palmetta (Argentina)

• Scores: 30-27, 30-27, 29-28

The Mongolians are consistently among my favorite fighters in the Olympics, and this year doesn’t look as though it will be any different. Tüvshinbat was entertaining and charismatic, and won this fight clearly.

Steven Donnelly (Ireland) def. Zohir Kedache (Algeria)

• Scores: 29-28, 30-26, 30-27

Pretty dominant win for Donnelly, who just flat outclassed Kedache in this one. It was never really competitive, honestly. Big gulf in ability between the two.

Eimantas Stanionis (Lithuania) def. Liu Wei (China)

• Scores: 30-27, 30-27, 30-27

Really fun fight to watch, competitive even with the sweep scores for Stanionis, who could be similar to countryman Egis Kavaliauskas from 2012 and make an entertaining run.

Men’s light heavyweight (81kg)

Carlos Andres Mina (Ecuador) def. Serge Michel (Germany)

• Scores: 29-28, 29-28, 29-28

A minor upset, perhaps, with Mina getting a very competitive win in a fight that was even on all three cards after two rounds, and came down to those last three minutes, which Mina did deserve to win.

Joshua Buatsi (Great Britain) def. Kennedy Katende (Uganda)

• TKO-3 (1:43)

Buatsi had maybe the flashiest performance we’ve seen so far, showing skills, power, some nice body punching — really the look of a very good pro prospect. This was the first stoppage we’ve seen in Rio, and will be one of the few we see overall, most likely. Buatsi has a tall order next, facing third seeded Elshod Rasulov of Uzbekistan.

Albert Ramirez (Venezuela) def. Petr Khamukov (Russia)

• Scores: 28-29, 29-28, 29-28

An interesting style clash, Khamukov technically sound, Ramirez more of a stylist, and it kind of depends on what you prefer, I think, but two of the three judges liked Ramirez here. This could have gone either way.