Caleb Plant Taking One More Fight Before Stepping to Bigger Competition
IBF and WBC welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr doesn’t believe in tune-ups. Super middleweight, and recently dethroned IBF champion Caleb “Sweethands” Plant (21-1, 12 KO’s) does. While he did not explicitly say as much, Plant’s general message did.
In his last fight, against undisputed 168-pound champion Canelo Alvarez, Sweethands suffered his first professional defeat. The Tennessee native got off to a good start then later faded and was ultimately stopped in the eleventh. Canelo had no obligation to observe a rematch so he has moved on to bigger and brighter fights. With that off the table, Sweethands could very realistically come straight back to a pair of blockbuster showdowns.
WBC middleweight champion Jermall “Hit Man” Charlo (32-0, 22 KO’s) and David “Red Flag” Benavidez (25-0, 22 KO’s) represent those two potential bouts. Both have upcoming fights to take care of first. Benavidez has a May 21 dance date with David Lemieux, while Charlo will mix it up with Macieji Sulecki on June 18. Each is heavily favored to win, although Plant would like to peruse other options first. He revealed this sentiment in a recent interview with Fight Hub TV.
“Yeah, I am coming back this year and I am looking to step right back in the ring with the biggest fight that I can make. You know, I am not looking to get no, you know, easy nobody. I’m looking to get the biggest fight that I can and then right after that I am going to step to David or Charlo, either one.”
I WANT THE BIGGEST, BUT NOT TOO BIG!
David Benavidez has already loudly voiced his displeasure with Plant seemingly dragging his feet to pen a bout. Even with his pending duel with Lemieux, Red Flag has expressed his willingness to commit to a fight with his very public rival. WBC lightweight champion Devin Haney has a three-fight deal with Top Rank that will see him run the gauntlet of George Kambosos (twice) and then Vasiliy Lomachenko, if successful.
Two division undisputed champion Claressa Shields and WBO middleweight champion Savannah Marshall had a working arrangement to face one another if victorious in their individual campaigns. This is said to say, a contract in play does not in any way prevent the suits from starting the paperwork on another. This fact has been proven time and time again. So, unlike Spence after undergoing eye surgery or being flung from a speeding car, Plant would rather elect to take a re-acclimating match first.
WHO’S THE MAN?!
So, if not Charlo or Benavidez, the next natural question becomes: who then? Plant was talking trash to Anthony Dirrell, who is ranked #5 (WBC), #6 (WBA) and #11 (IBF). So does this mean that he’d knuckle up with him next? Would Sweethands travel across the pond to test his might with UK pugilist and #13 (WBC) ranked Lerrone Richards? Richards has formally called out the former champion. Maybe Plant would try to lure the immensely popular, but rather green Edgar Berlanga in the ring. Who knows? Yet, it will be interesting to see what Plant feels is the “next biggest fight” he can get since he is content to slip the actual biggest ones waiting on him.
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By: Bakari Simpson
