Junior flyweight Brook Sibrian is coming off his first career loss and will fight Gloria Munguilla on this Friday’s 360 Promotions card Engage in the Battle of the Crossroads.
Sibrian, 31, hopes to start 2025 better than he ended 2024. A few days before Thanksgiving, Tania Garcia-Hernandez lost her “0” via unanimous decision.
What went wrong? Cibrian pointed to the injuries.
“Ultimately, I came to the conclusion that I had injured my hamstring, which left me unable to move [a] Four whole days,” Cibrian said.
Cibrian returned a month and a half after his last win and, in hindsight, perhaps too soon. She was unable to maximize her training camp productivity before fighting Mongela.
Cibrian was devastated by the first defeat of her career.
“It took us a week and a half to process everything,” Cibrian said. “I went through different stages. The first two days I was in denial and I cried every time I thought about it, but then I got over it. Then it was acceptance. Then it was finally time to watch the fight. I don’t want to relive it, But okay, I have to get over it.”
The positive for Cibrian is that despite the flaws in her record, no one has turned their back on her.
“I think overall it was a really good experience,” Cibrian said. “Obviously, no one likes to talk about failure or bring it up, but it is what it is. I accept it. I use it as motivation to keep going.”
Her team consists of Cibrian and her fiancé/coach Jose “Mega” Soto, a former boxer. Cibrian maintains a 5-1 (2 KO) record since losing to Hernandez in November.
Cibrian will turn professional in October 2023. She competes five times in 2024 and is now fighting for the new year. By comparison, Munguilla, 33, turned pro in November 2022 and has a 6-1 record. In 2024, Mongira fought just twice.
“Our careers just went at different paces,” Cibrian said. “I also know she hasn’t gone past five rounds.”
Cibrian lost his last fight in Mexico, with Mongela losing to Cristal Rosado last March. Mongela thus earned a chance to move up to junior bantamweight. While one loss isn’t a death sentence, for the pair, who are both in their 30s, two losses could change the momentum of their careers.
The two fighters had sparred with each other once before Mongela turned pro and will now meet in the ring for the first time in a scheduled eight-round contest.
The stakes are high in the undercard battle. The winner of this game will get a huge opportunity.
“Brooke is 10 times more dangerous than she was before her last fight,” Soto said. “I believe after her defeat, people will be more willing to fight her.”
