PHL bet Aira Villegas crashes out of Asian Games boxing

Paris Olympic bronze medalist Aira Villegas suffered a stunning first-round exit in the 20th Asian Games after falling to India’s Sakshi Chaudhary in the women’s 51-kilogram preliminary round on Sept. 22, 2026, at Nishio Gymnasium in Japan.

In one of the most shocking results for the PHL national boxing delegation, one of the squad’s projected podium finishers did not even qualify for the Round of 16, losing 5-0 to Chaudhary, who delivered a clinical performance from start to finish.

Villegas visibly struggled with Chaudhary’s height and reach advantage from the get-go, falling behind early as all five ringside judges awarded the opening round to the Indian pugilist.

To neutralize Villegas’ aggressiveness, Chaudhary maintained her distance by keeping her lead left hand up to cover against any sudden flurries from the Filipina bet.

Aside from that crafty move, Chaudhary also dominated with her jab and counters, tagging Villegas several times in the first round to immediately gain momentum in the fight.

Villegas shifted tactics in the following round, turning her left shoulder several times to uncork some uppercuts, but the crafty Chaudhary neutralized that offensive approach with fluid footwork.

A couple more 1-2 combinations ensured Chaudhary a 2-0 lead after two rounds, leaving Villegas in deep trouble with only a knockout likely to pull off a miracle win.

Villegas desperately stepped on the gas pedal and stalked Chaudhary by pressing forward throughout the third round, but none of it worked as India’s star navigated the ring with mastery.

With her in-and-out movement and backpedaling counters, Chaudhary evaded what could have been a disastrous third round had Villegas been able to land her final three-punch combination and a late left-hook haymaker.

Four judges scored the bout 30-27, while the other had it 30-26, all in favor of Chaudhary, who is set for a Round of 16 clash against Kazakhstan’s Alua Balkibekova.