Saul “Canelo” Alvarez drops Caleb Plant in Round 11 to win the IBF super-middleweight title.

By: Emmanuel Mendez

The tension both Canelo Alvarez and Caleb Plant had before the fight made this one very anticipated. Canelo is usually a calm man, but Plant got under his skin when the American insulted Alvarez in a press conference. 

This encounter became personal for Canelo, and many boxing fans expect a good fight between both fighters. 

The stage was MGM Grand Arena, and the fighters were to get their hands on each other as soon as the bell rang. Round 1 started decently for the Mexican fighter as he looked to land many body shots.

Plant showed off his impressive jab, which he would often use throughout the fight. Canelo`s power punches are what was concerning for Plant, so he would at times be defensive. 

The fight was close in the first few rounds, as Canelo took Rounds 1 and 3. Plant took round 2 because of the number of punches landed on Canelo. 

Canelo learned to be more patient with the fighter and find body openings for those powerful body shots. Once again, Plant would score points with those solid and fast jabs.

 The jabs are what Plant used to connect with Canelo and create combinations that would connect, but Canelo has a good chin to take those punches.

Canelo`s punches were more powerful, and he was looking to land left and right hooks in the later rounds.

It seemed like after the 4th round; Canelo was wearing Plant down with those powerful punches on the body. Canelo wouldn’t throw as many punches as Plant, but he lands those punches, scoring his points and punishing his opponent. 

After round eight, you can tell Plant is getting somewhat tired but keeps running and doesn’t give up. Canelo is just ruthless with those punches and gives Plant trouble when trying to defend and continue using his jabs. 

Plant had heart and landed some combinations of his own with his fast hands, but it barely damaged Canelo, and it scored him points which could give him round nine. Overall, most rounds favored Canelo, so as the fight was ending, Plant would’ve needed a knockout to secure a win.

That was an impossible task as Canelo kept the pressure on and looked for his signature uppercuts and powerful hooks.

Round 11 is when the fight would end as Canelo would get two knockdowns. The first was when Canelo landed a left hook plus a right uppercut, and Plant went down but insisted on continuing.

That was a big mistake as Canelo hunted down an injured Caleb Plant. Canelo ran him down, landed rights, and left, and Plant couldn’t handle enough punishment. Few more fast punches, Plant on the ropes, and then the American went down.

A TKO victory for Canelo Alvarez and makes history as he becomes the first Mexican undisputed middleweight champion. The pressure was too much for Plant to handle as Canelo looks to be unbeatable right now.

32% of punches converted for Canelo according to Showtime and landed more power punches, which was 41%.  

Canelo claims all four 168-pound belts and becomes the sixth man to win all four belts in a boxing division. The Mexican superstar continues to show why he is the best pound-for-pound boxer on the planet; the question now is, what’s next?