Boxing Scene, AR
Feb 8 2008
Holt Plays it Safe in Vegas; Martirosyan Shines
By Jake Donovan
It’s become painfully obvious that the term "win today, look good the
next time" is no longer in Kendall Holt’s repertoire, simply because
he’s not capable of doing both in the same fight.
Such was painfully evident in Thursday’s VERSUS-televised main event
in Las Vegas, as a spirited undercard loaded with knockouts was
dampened by Holt’s methodical 10-round decision win over Ben Tackie.
The bout was Holt’s first since his controversial loss against
Ricardo Torres last summer in Barranquilla, Colombia. In that fight,
he effectively mixed boxing and brawling through ten rounds,
including a hard knockdown midway through, but ran into trouble late
in the fight before serving as the victim of a highly questionable
stoppage.
Against Tackie, Holt made certain to not allow history to repeat
itself. The Patterson, NJ product came into the ring sporting a
replica jersey of close friend and New York Giants running back
Brandon Jacobs, who is known for his explosive power and ability to
move a pile the moment he lowers his head and takes a handoff.
However, Holt’s homage to his Super Bowl winning friend did not spill
over into the ring.
It was the same pattern throughout the fight. Holt was effective his
jab and mixed in an occasional power shot, but for the most part
played keep away against a plodding and badly faded version of
Tackie. Holt was never in danger of getting chin-checked, but refused
to deviate from the script, settling for a steady, if excessively
monotonous pace.
Tackie tried his damnest to make a fight out of it in the fifth
round, charging forward and letting his hands go (by his standards,
anyway) after offering very little through the first four rounds.
Holt responded by spending the entire round circling the ring, a
tactic which drew excessive boos from the ballroom crowd.
The jeering must’ve struck a chord with Holt, who came out purposeful
in the sixth. With his own corner pleading to pick up the pace, Holt
landed his first combination of the fight, a 1-2 that momentarily
rocked the iron-chinned Tackie. Holt remained on the offensive but
lost his own mouthpiece somewhere along the way, leading to a brief
timeout after a lull in the action.
That would be the end of Kendall the entertainer, as the junior
welterweight contender reverted to fighting in reverse for the
remainder of the fight. Tackie followed him around the ring, looking
for openings that never presented itself. The closest to any drama
occurring came in the ninth round, when Tackie flopped to the floor
following a brief clinch. Tackie sold referee Robert Byrd on the idea
that he was hit with a low blow, causing Byrd to call time-out and
issue a warning to Holt.
No problem, said Holt, who spent the rest of the fight playing keep
away on the outside, and clinching anytime Tackie came within
punching range.
One of the four points of scoring criteria is defense, of which Holt
did a sensational job. Tackie landed a mere 58 punches throughout the
fight, very few of them doing any damage. But this being Vegas, the
fact that the Ghana native kept coming forward throughout was enough
to sell judge CJ Ross on the idea of an even fight, with his inept
scorecard reading 95-95 by night’s end. Dick Houck and Paul Smith
saved a boring fight from also becoming a controversial one, with
their identical cards of 98-92 for Holt a lot closer to reality.
With the win, Holt advances to 23-2 (12KO) but does little to rally
the troops behind his cause for a rematch with Torres or a shot at
any other alphabet titlist. The talented junior welterweight should
manage to stay busy after recently signing a promotional deal with
Top Rank, but is at a point where he’ll have to find a way to
simultaneously win and look good.
Tackie falls to 29-9-1 (17KO) with the loss, his third straight. Now
5-6-1 in his last 12 bouts and no longer able to let his hands go,
the 34-year old is clearly at the end of his career.
No such problems in the career of 21-year old Vanes "Nightmare"
Martirosyan, as things are just getting started for the undefeated
junior middleweight prospect and 2004 US Olympian. While the main
event left the crowd booing throughout, Martirosyan gave ’em plenty
of reason to cheer with a three-round beatdown of Michi Munoz in the
televised co-feature.
The brash Armenian, now residing in Glendale, California, was on the
attack early and often throughout, scoring three knockdowns in the
brief yet punishing affair. A counter left hand put Munoz on the deck
early in the opening round, drawing chants of "Va-Nes" from the
crowd, which came alive anytime Martirosyan had his Mexican foe in
any trouble.
Martirosyan remained on the attack in round two, landing several
1-2’s upstairs while keeping Munoz within punching range throughout.
Munoz managed to stay on his feet throughout the round, but was
forced to take a knee midway through the third after taking one right
hand too many. He beat referee Kenny Bayliss’ mandatory eight count,
but would’ve been better served to remain on the canvas. Martirosyan
teed off on the Mexican before forcing him to a knee for the round’s
second knockdown, this time with Bayliss immediately waving off the
bout.
The official time was 2:20 of round three.
Martirosyan improves to 19-0 (13KO), already registering his second
win of 2008 and scheduled to return in late March. Munoz won’t fight
for a while, suffering a broken nose in addition to the first
stoppage loss of his career, both of which earns him a trip to the
medical suspension list. He falls to 20-2 (13KO) with the loss,
snapping a three-fight win streak.
A pair of Vegas-based prospects looked impressive in separate
knockout wins.
Alex Mercado made it 4 KO’s in as many fights, systematically
breaking down Jose Manuel Garcia (3-3, 1KO) in the third round of
their bantamweight swing bout. Mercardo scored knockdowns in each of
the first two rounds before referee Robert Byrd mercifully halted the
bout early in the third round.
The walkout bout barely provided enough time for the crowd to get up
from their chairs, never mind file out of the arena. Angel Flores
(9-2, 3KO) took out Walberto Gaxiola (4-5, 3KO) a mere 35 seconds
into their scheduled four round junior welterweight bout. A single
left hook to the liver caused Gaxiola to collapse to the canvas,
rolling around in agony as the bout was waved off without a count.
The show was presented by Top Rank, Inc.
Jake Donovan is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America
and the Tennessee Boxing Advisory Board. His column runs every
Tuesday on BoxingScene.com.