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Their first two world championship bouts were unforgettable, action-packed and controversial.
Now, WBO junior welterweight champion Kendall “Rated R’’ Holt, 24-2 (13), will take on Ricardo “Mochuelo’’ Torres, 32-2 (28), in the final chapter of a thrilling trilogy on Saturday, Dec. 13, live on a special edition of ShoBox: The New Generation at 11 p.m. ET/PT, delayed on the west coast.
Tied at one win a piece, the decisive rubber match will eliminate any and all disputes from the previous fights, which lasted a total of 12 rounds, and determine who reigns supreme in the 140-pound division.
In a rematch on July 5, 2008, in Las Vegas , Holt and Torres combined to knock down each other three times in 61 seconds on ShoBox: The New Generation in one of the most dramatic and explosive opening rounds in history.
After Torres floored Holt 13 seconds into the bout with a right to the head, the then-defending champion decked the challenger a second time 21 seconds later.
With fans thinking the fight was over, Holt rallied to connect with an overhand right to Torres’ face, sending Torres crashing to the ropes. Moments later, the referee Jay Nady halted an incredible slugfest at 1:01. Torres, who was making his third defense of the WBO crown, suffered only his second career loss and relinquished the belt to Holt.
In their initial encounter, Torres retained the crown with a hotly debated 11th-round TKO over Holt on Sept. 1, 2007, in the champion’s hometown of Barranquilla , Colombia . Holt, of Paterson , N.J. , knocked down Torres with a left-right combination in the sixth session and was ahead on two of the three scorecards entering what would become the final round.
But Torres dropped Holt with a right hand near his corner in the 11th. As Holt attempted to use his legs and hold on, he continuously slipped on a wet surface caused by fans who hurled beer cans, sodas and water into the ring. Despite the fact that the fighters had to dodge ice cubes and various liquids, referee Genaro Rodriguez declined to stop the match and dry the ring’s surface. Instead, he halted the contest with Holt still on his feet late in the 11th round.
Tickets are now on sale for the event, which is promoted by Top Rank, Inc., for Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City , N.J. Tickets at $200, $100 and $50 are available on www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 1-800-736-1420, or at any Ticketmaster outlet nationwide. Tickets can also be purchased at the Boardwalk Hall box office. The box office is open Monday through Friday 11 a.m. till 5 p.m. and on Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. (event day hours are subject to change).
Nick Charles will call the action from ringside with Steve Farhood serving as expert analyst. The executive producer of ShoBox is Gordon Hall with Richard Gaughan producing and Rick Phillips directing. ShoBox recently celebrated seven outstanding years on the air.
