On Saturday, October 1st, DiBella Entertainment (DBE) will present “Noche de ‘Marvilla’: Martinez vs. Barker” featuring Middleweight Champion, Sergio Martinez (47-2-2, 26KO’s), defending his WBC Diamond belt and Ring Championship against England’s undefeated European Champion, “Dazzling” Darren Barker (23-0, 14KO’s), at Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, NJ. Opening up HBO’s World Championship Boxing® telecast, will be top-rated middleweight contender, “Irish” Andy Lee (26-1, 19KO’s) as he takes on former participant of “The Contender” and the only man to defeat Lee as a pro, Brian Vera (19-5, 12KO’s), in a 10-round middleweight match-up. With a large contingent of Irish fans expected to be on hand to see Lee, promoter Lou DiBella has added fellow Irishmen Seanie Monaghan (8-0, 5KO’s) and Kevin “Kid” Rooney (2-0, 1KO) to the undercard, giving the two undefeated fighters the opportunity to showcase their skills in front of the pro-Irish crowd.
“I’ve been a huge fan of Andy ever since the first time I saw him fight. He’s not only one of my favorite fighters, he’s also Irish, which makes me proud,” said Monaghan. “It’s going to be a great atmosphere on October 1st with all the Irish fans in attendance. I expect Andy to win this fight and to one day very soon become the middleweight champion. I just hope that I will be there fighting on his undercard when it happens.”
“Fighting on the undercard of a show that features Andy is a huge opportunity for any Irish fighter,” stated Rooney. “In my previous fights, I was the only Irish fighter on the card, but now, not only is Seanie fighting on the card, but you also have Andy, who, in my eyes, is one of the top three or four middleweights in the world, fighting in the co-feature. I expect a huge turnout come October 1st and seeing all those Irish flags will definitely make for a very exciting atmosphere and give me extra motivation to put on another crowd-pleasing performance.”
Monaghan has drawn large, boisterous crowds in each of his professional fights to date. His fight on October 1st will be his second in Atlantic City as a pro, and also the second time fighting underneath the aforementioned Lee. Monaghan fought on the undercard of Lee’s most recent victory, a 10th-round TKO over Craig McEwan on HBO at Foxwoods this past March, winning a four-round unanimous decision.
For Rooney Jr., the son of famed trainer Kevin Rooney Sr., it will be his first fight under the DBE banner since being hired on as DiBella’s Executive Assistant and Director of Public Relations in August.
