FightHype's staff predictions are in for this weekend's rematch as WBO jr. welterweight champion Ricardo Torres defends his title against No. 1 contender Kendall Holt. Will it be repeat or revenge? Who will? Who will lose? Get the answers to these questions and more in FightHype's staff predictions.
RICARDO TORRES VS. KENDALL HOLT
Ben "The Hype" Thompson - Holt by Unanimous Decision Now that June, the month of mismatches (Pavlik-Lockett, Berto-Rodriguez, Pacquiao-Diaz), is over, I can finally get back to making some serious predictions. Although the first fight provided fireworks, knockdowns and controversy, I just don't see the rematch being quite as exciting. Expect Holt to come out cautious...sticking and moving behind his jab and picking his shots. Torres will press the action, bulling forward, head down and working the body as he tries to slow Holt down. Any time Torres gets close, you can bet that Holt will slap a bear hug on him. It'll be ugly...it'll be sloppy...but an overly cautious Holt will snatch enough rounds to win a unanimous decision.
Percy "The Talent" Crawford - Torres TKO10
Sean Malone - Holt by Unanimous Decision I think Holt will be wary of Torres' power and will use his superior boxing skills to earn a unanimous decision.
Nick Sanchez - Holt TKO7 I think homefield advantage will be the difference in this one as it was in the first fight for Torres. I don't think we'll see flying beer bottles being flung into the ring in this one. Only thing that's gonna be flung here is Holt's fists en route to a mid-round, probably 7th, stoppage.
Albert Rosales - Holt by Split Decision This ain't Colombia baby! I see Kendall putting on his running shoes while outpointing Torres with nice, technical boxing.
Simon Ruvalcaba - Holt KO8
Ed Garza - Torres by Split Decision
Rob Abreu - Holt by Unanimous Decision Boxing rematches tend to have less action than the first fight. Holt will enjoy fighting back at home in the states.
Jack Plato - Torres by Unanimous Decision I am predicting Torres by UD in a competitive fight. Scores will be something like 115-113, 116-12, 116-112.
Joey "Titlebelt" Karash - Torres KO9
Derek Batista - Torres I find it hard to pick Kendall Holt, even though he should win this fight easily. I am going with Torres because he has way more guts than Kendall and perhaps has more confindence due to stopping Kendall in the 1st fight.
John Tandy (Editor, www.ultimateboxingresults.com) - Torres by TKO A very interesting rematch. It's a true case of boxer against puncher. Torres is the champion and has tremendous power. He first came to notice when he almost caused one of the biggest upsets of the century when he had Miguel Cotto in all sorts of trouble, but prior to that, he had fought nobody. They both have a common opponent in Mike Arnaoutis. Torres went the distance against him and barely got the decision. Holt, on the other hand, completely outboxed Arnaoutis. In the first fight, it took Torres 11 rounds to finally catch up with Holt. This time around, Holt will be more cautious. That said, Holt's chin has let him down in the past and if he gets drawn into a fight, there will be only one winner. I think there are two possible results in this fight: a Torres knockout or a Holt points win. Either is as likely as the other. Torres has 12 rounds to land a bomb on Holt and I think he'll pull it off. Torres by late stoppage.
