Light welterweight Kendall Holt has filed an official protest to the WBO asking for a rematch with WBO light welterweight champion Ricardo Torrez (32-1, 28 KOs), who defeated Holt by 11th round TKO earlier this month on September 1st at the Salon Jumbo del Country Club, in Barranquilla, Atlantico, Colombia. Ostensibly, Holt feels that the ring was unsafe in the 11th round of the fight, immediately after Torres knocked Holt down with a scorching left hook, at which point the fans began to throw beer and water into the ring, making the canvas slick and traction difficult.
Though Holt was never seen to have slipped during the round, they still feel that the ring was made unsafe and therefore the bout should be ruled as a “no contest,” meaning that the fight wouldn’t count on Holt’s record, and they would have to fight one more. Also, Holt states further that he was hit in the eye in the sixth round by a can, and it made it difficult to see. This occurred immediately after Holt had knocked Torres down and had him badly hurt in the round. Based on reports, the WBO will make a decision within 10 days, letting them know at that time whether they will grant Holt’s request.
Even if fans threw water or beer into the ring in the 11th, Holt was never seen slipping on the canvas once. In fact, it was Torres who slipped and fell during the ring while he was in the process of finishing off Holt who was badly hurt from the knockdown which had occurred moments earlier. Water or no water, Holt would have been knocked out on that night because he was badly out of it. More than that, the canvas was perfectly dry prior to him being knocked down, so it should matter little if it became wet afterwards; He wasn’t going to be doing much fighting from that point on anyway.