NEW YORK— Dibella Entertainment provided a great opportunity for some of New York City’s brightest boxing up and comers Wednesday night at the Roseland Ballroom. Sean Monaghan (15-0, 10 KO’s, 174lbs) took another step in the direction of the national spotlight when he took on Rayco Saunders (22-17-2, 9 KO’s, 174lbs).
Monaghan, hoping to showcase his ever improving boxing ability began the fight working behind a stiff jab and would occasionally follow up with a right hand over the top. Saunders has been in the ring with many young talents, and Monaghan was aware of this before entering the ring. Technique would be the difference maker in the fight.
Saunders went into a shell early on in the fight, only opening up to shoot the occasional right hand at the tail end of any combinations from Monaghan. With only one knockout in his long career, it was evident early that Saunders did not want to take many risks in this fight. Monaghan maintained his composure. Constantly sticking his strong jab and only opening up with combinations during lulls in the action. Monaghan was winning the first half of the fight with his work rate and effective punching.
The sixth round saw some interesting action as Monaghan was able to land a clean straight right hand that seemed to stun Saunders a bit. Saunders began making faces in Monaghan’s direction, possibly hoping to entice Monaghan into throwing too much and making a mistake. Monaghan didn’t bite though, and took his time while landing two combinations behind his jab.
The second half of the fight saw Saunders up his work rate. Like man veterans who have faced younger fighters, he was likely hoping to let Monaghan tire himself out before taking matters into his own hands. Monaghan seemed to expect this, and only threw combination punches when Saunders created openings. The tables turned, but it was still Monaghan in control.
The final two rounds saw some exciting action. Monaghan had Saunders pinned on the ropes for the entirety of the ninth, throwing dozens and dozens of punches. Towards the end of the round, while still on the ropes, Saunders began to land some heavy blows of his own. In the tenth, Monaghan controlled the pace by slipping Saunders’ punches, and punishing him with counters; stunning his opponent at one point. The final scores read 98-92, 99-91, and 99-91 giving Monaghan a unanimous decision victory and the WBC Continental Americas Light Heavyweight title.
Rising star Ivan Redkach (11-0, 10 KO’s, 136lbs) squared off against Tebor Brosch (7-3-5, 2 KO’s, 137lbs) in a very one sided bout. Redkach, as usual, came out gunning for a knockout. He was a bit more calculated than usual, waiting for the right moments to land his heavy hands, but Brosch allowed for the big hits to come with his weak guard. The left hook was Redkasch’s favorite punch, as he landed it frequently and powerfully. After a hard left hook rocked Brosch into the ropes, Redkasch wasted no time pouncing. After numerous hard punches, the referee was forced to call a halt to the action at the 2:07 mark of the first, giving Redkasch a TKO victory.
Gabriel Bracero (19-1, 3 KO’s, 141lbs) came out in full force when he took on hard puncher Erick Cruz (16-10-3, 16 KO’s, 147lbs). Despite the fact that Cruz has the stellar knockout ratio, Bracero had no problem getting inside to test Cruz’ mettle. The early rounds saw Bracero landing the harder blows and countering very well. Cruz, on the other hand, seemed to try and time his quick fitted opponent, but was unable to do so.
From the outside with pinpoint hooks, to the inside with lightning fast combinations, Bracero controlled every aspect of the bout. As the fight bore on, Bracero fought with his hands down, showing no respect to Cruz’supposed power. In the eighth and final round, Bracero unleashed dozens of punches, hurting Cruz, who had to be saved by the bell. The final scores were all in favor of Bracero and read 79-73, 80-72, and 80-72 for a unanimous decision victory.
New York City’s newest ticket seller, Heather Hardy (1-0, 124lbs) squared off against Unique Harris (Debut, 120lbs) of Philadelphia, PA in a bout scheduled for four rounds. Like Hardy’s debut, it started off with fireworks. Hardy landed huge hooks from the outside, and then was able to work Harris into the ropes with a viscous body attack. Harris, being no pushover herself, was able to sneak in some some powerful counter hooks on her own, occasionally keeping Hardy at bay. By the end of the second, despite losing, Harris was able to open up a cut over Hardy’s right eye. This didn’t seem to bother Hardy very much, as she was able to continue her high punch output, landing flush punches time and time again. The final scorecards read 40-36, 39-37, 39-37, and 39-37 giving Heather Hardy a unanimous decision victory.
The popular Floriano Pagliara (13-4-2, 6 KO’s, 130lbs) took to the ring against Jeremy McLaurin (9-4, 5 KO’s, 130lbs) in a bout scheduled for eight rounds. McLaurin started the fight throwing multiple jabs towards his shorter opponent. Pagliara worked behind his own jab, but his jab was used to set up harder follow-up blows. McLaurin seemed very hesitant to trade with Pagliara, so the opening stanza was very one-sided. Pagliara upped his output as the bout progressed, and McLaurin’s only response was wild haymakers that rarely connected.
The middle rounds saw Pagliara stay in complete control of the bout, landing multiple combinations to McLaurin’s body and head. McLaurin still had no response, and his haymaker punches were smothered by Pagliara. In the late rounds, Pagliara’s output slowed a bit, allowing McLaurin to actually land some blows. Even still, Pagliara dominated those rounds. In the end, the final scorecards read 78-74, 80-72, and 80-72, giving Pagliara a unanimous decision win.
Young prospect, Travis Peterkin (4-0, 3 KO’s, 178lbs) squared off against the very tough Hamid Abdul-Mateen (3-2-2, 0 KO’s, 175lbs) in a bout scheduled for four rounds. Peterkin looked very calm to start the bout, focusing on his southpaw left hand to knock Abdul-Mateen off his game-plan. Whenever he stunned Abdul-Mateen, he would jump all over him with strong flurries. As the bout progressed into the second half of their fight, Peterkin was in complete control, and Abdul-Mateen had no answer in response. Left hand after left hand came at Abdul-Mateen as the bout ended. The final scores read 39-37, 40-36, and 40-36 in favor of Peterkin, giving him a unanimous decision victory.
Delen Parsley (8-0, 2 KO’s, 160lbs) stepped up to the middleweight division to open up the evening as he took on Ibaheim King (10-7, 4 KO’s, 159lbs) in a bout scheduled for six rounds. Both fighters opened up hoping to make their strengths an immediate factor. Parsley is a tall and rangy fighter, and his jab came out hard and often, while King worked his way inside behind his southpaw straight right. Neither fighter took complete control throughout the fight, and they took turns landing hard punches. But it was Parsley who was getting better as each round passed, while King began to lose his accuracy.
By the end of the fifth, though, King seemed to grow visibly frustrated, which escalated at the end of the round when he wouldn’t sit on his stool, instead opting to pace around the ring shouting at himself. Both fighters tried finishing strong, but it was Parsley who was the better fighter in the ring. The final scores read 58-56, 59-55, and 59-55 giving Parsley a unanimous decision victory.
