Kendall Holt
| Kendall Holt | |
|---|---|
Holt after winning the WBO title, 2008
|
|
| Statistics | |
| Nickname(s) | Rated R |
| Rated at | Light welterweight |
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) |
| Reach | 74 in (188 cm) |
| Nationality | American |
| Born |
June 14, 1981 Paterson, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 34 |
| Wins | 28 |
| Wins by KO | 16 |
| Losses | 6 |
Kendall Holt (born June 14, 1981) is an American professional boxer who held the WBO junior welterweight title from 2008 to 2009.
Holt had a very tough upbringing in his native Paterson, New Jersey. He was raised by his father after a difficult childhood, which culminated with his mother Debra Holt being convicted of killing a homeless man, dubbed as a "thrill killing", during an evening of senseless violence and crime. This was discussed as a feature before Holt's Showtime Championship Boxing bout with Timothy Bradley on April 4, 2009. Holt was taken from his father while he was young due to child abuse, and was put into foster care.
Holt made his professional debut in 2001 and won his first 15 fights, before he fought Gilberto Reyes on March 26, 2004. Holt viciously knocked out Reyes with a counter left hook that froze his opponent for a split second before he crashed face first to the canvas.
The sensational knockout garnered Holt the status of a rising prospect in the welterweight division, but Holt was surprisingly knocked out by Thomas Davis on June 18, 2004, at the DePaul Athletic Center in Chicago, Illinois. Holt was dominating the first round, when Davis dropped Holt to the canvas with a straight right hand. Holt got up, but was on unsteady legs as Davis landed three more strong blows down the middle including another punishing right cross to the chin. Holt crumbled to the canvas for the final time as the referee stopped the fight.
Holt won his next two fights in New Jersey, before moving down to light welterweight to take on 1996 US Olympian David Díaz on February 4, 2005, at the Foxwoods Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut. Holt caught Díaz with a whip-like left hook to the head followed by a sharp right hand that dropped him in round one along with opening a cut around his right eye. Diaz finally found the range in the seventh round and floored Holt with two right hands to the head. Holt survived the knockdown and in the next round, stunned Díaz with a blistering five-punch volley of left hooks and right hands to the face. Diaz retreated on wobbly legs; however, Holt continued to unload with both hands and connected with another sharp flurry of shots. The referee had seen enough and stopped the fight, awarding Holt an upset technical knockout victory.
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