Monaghan sticks to the plan, wins 10UD over George in truTV main event

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Seanie Monaghan (26-0, 16KOs) defeated Donovan George in the main event of Top Rank’s Metro PCS Friday Night Knockout on truTV, live from the Aviator Sports Complex in Brooklyn, New York, USA

 

It was competitive early in the fight as Monaghan went in with a plan and was determined to work his game. George, on the other hand, landed some of the harder punches in the fight and was utilizing a brute style based on a real intelligent approach. George was sharp with his jab and worked the lead left to a degree of success, and he was also landing the right hand. The problem for George was his inability to put it all together. That was certainly not a problem Monaghan was having as he strung together his punches with impressive fluidity.

 

The terms of the fight completely changed after George injured his surgically repaired right hand. It was noticeable that he was favoring it in the 3rd round, but he made it blatantly obvious in the 4th. In fact, the doctor asked to see George before the 5th started in an effort to gauge the seriousness of the injury. George, in one of the gutsiest scenes I’ve ever witnessed in a sporting event, pleaded with both doctor and referee not to stop the fight, even when it was obvious that he was in excruciating pain.

 

The referee and doctor reluctantly allowed George to continue and he was noticeably fired up. In an effort to prove his hand’s utility, George let the right hand fly and landed a few hard shots – hard under the circumstances—although they had little to no effect on Monaghan.

 

Monaghan stayed focused and disciplined and did not allow George’s circumstances to dictate his performance.

 

George used the right hand less and less as the fight continued, but he managed to dig deep every so often and let the right hand go, wincing once he made contact with anything.

 

It was impressive to see Monaghan stick to the plan and refrain from following George into a trap, but it was equally disappointing to see Monaghan get stuck in the same gear and unable to switch things up. Monaghan was persistent, but he couldn’t take out a one-handed fighter in George. And George is a tough fighter and it would have been an impressive feat to get someone like that out early, but that is exactly what Monaghan was hoping to do in the fight because he needed to show some separation between himself and some of the great fighters George has shared the ring with in past outings.

 

Still, Monaghan was able to do what he needed to and showed a real maturity in this win as the judges awarded him the unanimous decision at the end of 10 rounds with the scores of 99-91 and 100-90 twice.