Facebook FightNight Live: Sullivan Barrera vs. Sean Joseph Monaghan RBR

Sullivan Barrera vs. Sean Joseph Monaghan, 10 rounds @ light heavyweight

 

I'm low-key rooting for Seanie but expecting Barrera to flip him upside down and drill a hole to China with him.

 

Round 1

Monaghan is jabbing the body and circling left, keeping his feet evenly spaced apart, lined up with his shoulders. Rocking-chair motions by Monaghan, creeping laterally and pumping out jabs & 1-2s. Barrera is skidding jabs off the waiting left wrist of Monaghan and pushing through with big powerful right crosses - slow and not yet dialed in with his aim, just warming up. Barrera telegraphing less as he tightens it up and fires straighter. Monaghan is taking some chances, jumping in and hacking across Barrera's nape with a combination while the Cuban is leaned over anticipating higher punches due to a Monaghan jab-feint at eye level. Barrera is popping jabs into the guard and taking out his left hook for a test drive, missing from too far away.

10-9 Monaghan, not a lot in that but he landed more.

 

Round 2

Monaghan is rubbing the jab across the scalp as Barrera ducks in and goes to his body with quick drumroll couplets. BIG overhand right bashing down on the head of Monaghan from outside. Barrera is ducking as Monaghan ropes out multiple jabs from outside, then coming up slamming him in the bicep with a right hand. Barrera throwing lead left hooks now, sliding forward on his front foot and dragging in the rear. Barrera in a rhythm now, slipping jabs on the way in and sniping with pot shots. Monaghan just barely sidesteps a big right hand and steeples his forearms over his face protectively. That power of Barrera is making him nervous, based on what he's felt of it so far.

10-9 Barrera

19-19

 

Sadam Ali has it 20-18 Barrera.

Fans scoring on Facebook are so inconsistent, 4% more of them gave Monaghan the second which IMO was a far more dominant Barrera round than was the 1st.

 

Round 3

BIG lead right connected by Barrera as both men are reaching in with jabs while circling in close on their toes. Monaghan is trying to walk Barrera into ambushes, slinking into corners and shelling up and then opening up with straight combos when Barrera swipes down at him with the heavy lead right. Both men are connecting, swapping leather at a pretty high pace for light heavyweights, Barrera the harder blows yet nearly all singles while Monaghan is working in combination and outlanding him 3:1 or better but never setting his feet and putting much starch on them.

10-9 Barrera, very close

29-28 Barrera

 

Round 4

Monaghan is defending well on the inside, taking baby steps to either side to dodge Barrera's short right hands, getting skimmed and grazed on the ear at worst. Monaghan is working combinations at point blank until Barrera snatches him in a bear hug or headlock, forced to let go by the ref. Monaghan working very cleverly at mid-range, worming his way in behind a jab, and trading right hands with Barrera with both men landing but Monaghan cleanly and Barrera just obliquely as Monaghan keeps twirling around him like a forkful of spaghetti. Heavy left hooks from Barrera, swinging his way in madly, caught on the outer forearms of Monaghan, who counters down the pipe with a strong 1-2.

10-9 Monaghan

38-38

 

Seanie has managed to keep it close early, but at what cost I wonder. He looks gassed.

Then again, so does Barrera...

 

Round 5

Monaghan is jabbing first, turning Barrera, then covering up as Barrera throws hooks & uppercuts from mid-range. Monaghan is careful not to linger in front of Barrera for too long after scoring with the jab or 1-2 but as his coach admonishes him for at ringside he is hopping straight backward, giving Barrera space to clip him with some wild "fat" shots, instead of just cleaving in close and stepping around him as he did in the more successful fourth. Barrera has landed the heaviest stuff but Monaghan is still dribbling some nice combos off his nose in between, and covering up well to screen out the majority of Barrera's powerful bombs.

10-9 Barrera, close

48-47 Barrera

 

Round 6

Monaghan is getting drawn in as Barrera switches to a shoulder roll, letting his fist rest on the near hip, then slashing outward at the face of Monaghan with left hooks when he darts in behind a high straight combo, Barrera's head ducking clear of it to one side with his neck bent. Barrera is turning his shoulders and slipping all of Monaghan's straight punches now, countering fluidly. Barrera is ripping some big uppercuts on the flat underside of the chin and digging straight rights into the body, yet he can't shift Monaghan too far off the Main Events logo at center ring. Monaghan is hanging tough and still pumping out jabs like a religious zealot handing out brimstone leaflets.

10-9 Barrera

58-56 Barrera

 

Round 7

Monaghan is starting to get nailed at medium-long range as Barrera has found his distance with the straight right, and is sweeping in a left hook behind the ear when Monaghan tries barreling in headfirst to close the gap. Too much straight back-and-forth movement by Monaghan, and too little of the good lateral motion he employed in the first half. Barrera starting to clap down on his skull regularly with the right hand, and now also winning the jab battle as Monaghan is always playing catch-up and recovering from the rattling blows of Barrera, shaking off the cobwebs during his reprieves while the Cuban is just reloading to club him with another.

10-9 Barrera

68-65 Barrera