LAS VEGAS – In 61 seconds of punching madness, Kendall Holt exacted revenge on WBO light welterweight champion Ricardo Torres with a brutal first-round knockout at the Planet Hollywood Hotel & Casino Saturday night.  

Colombian champion Torres, who had stopped Holt in eleven rounds in Colombia back in September of 2007, came out flying and floored Holt with a right hand.  Holt bounced up quickly and actually took another right hand before referee Jay Nady pointed Torres to the corner and administered the mandatory eight count.

Torres pounced on Holt, flooring him again with a glancing left hook.  Holt was up quickly again and seemingly clear-headed after Nady’s count, when Torres made a tactical error of attacking wildly the talented and big punching Paterson, New Jersey resident.  Holt (24-2, 13 KOs) caught Torres with a right hand that put him to the ropes and Holt’s second right hand was a devastating punch that slumped a motionless Torres into a seated position on the middle rope, head down, out cold, and the fight was over just 1:01 into the first round.

From a five feet away ringside view, this writer could see Torres left foot eerily twitching, reminiscent of heavyweight champion Floyd Patterson’s first knockout of Ingemar Johansson in 1960.

“I had him in my hands, I got careless, and he got me,” stated a disappointed Torres after the fight.

Torres (32-2, 28 KOs) who took a good ten minutes after the knockout to come around and communicate effectively, was taken to the hospital for precautionary reasons.

“This is better than a dream come true” said new champion Holt.  

Regarding his two visits to the canvas, Holt had this to say: “I may go down, but I get back up.

“I never saw the first knockdown coming, I looked away and was distracted.  The second knockdown I saw it coming but couldn’t do anything about it. I wasn’t hurt and thought to myself to just let it go.  

“I caught him perfect and was pretty sure that would end it. I want to thank Torres for the rematch.   He didn’t have to come here to the United States to do this and for that reason I am champion.”