Monaghan wins big in Vegas

Pro boxer clinches 12th knockout victory in HBO debut

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Long Beach’s own pro boxer “Irish” Seanie Monaghan lived up to his promise of impressing the crowd in his Las Vegas debut last Saturday, when he defeated Anthony Caputo-Smith in the third round of a 10-round bout. The win marked the undefeated light heavyweight’s 12th knockout since he began his professional career in 2010, and he now boasts a 19-0 record.

Monaghan landed over 50 percent of his punches at the Thomas & Mack Center, his first fight to air live on HBO Pay Per View, as the undercard of the Timothy Bradley-Juan Manuel Marquez world welterweight title fight.

“[Caputo-Smith] had a good record, and I was a little bit nervous going into the fight because my mind was in a couple of different places — I didn’t want the fight to go too long, but at the same time I didn’t want to come out there and start brawling with him,” Monaghan said. “But once I get in the ring, I get unconfused and it comes naturally to me.”

Monaghan, who retains his WBC Continental Americas belt, said that a January fight at Madison Square Garden is in the works, and that he’s hoping for a shot at the world title.

“That’s where I’m at home, in the ring,” Monaghan said. “If you see how I’ve evolved, I feel I can go out there and outbox anybody right now — my skill is really becoming something that works for me in the ring.”