Caleb Plant hopes to put himself in the catbird seat as Canelo Alvarez’s next opponent when he faces Trevor McCumby in a twelve-round clash for the WBA interim super middleweight title on September 14th at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.
The former IBF champion Plant is lucky to be fighting McCumby for the WBA interim 168-lb title rather than a more dangerous contender like Christian Mbilli.
Plant-McCumby will be fighting on Canelo vs. Edgar Berlanga undercard live on DAZN PPV. Having Plant on the undercard will help create fan interest in a rematch with Canelo if he’s victorious against McCumby (28-0, 21 KOs). Canelo knocked out Plant in the 11th round in a unification fight three years ago in November 2021.
A Division in Need of New Blood
It’s hard to imagine that Plant (22-2, 13 KOs) could be Canelo’s next challenger, given that he’s two out of his last three fights and hasn’t fought in 18 months, but it’s an indication of how void of notable names in the 168-lb division.
Now that David Benavidez has moved up to 168, even hardcore fans are unfamiliar with almost everyone fighting in the super middleweight division. Struggling, inactive fighters like Plant, 32, are about all that’s left. Plant lost his last fight to David Benavidez by a one-sided 12-round unanimous decision in March 2013.
The super middleweight division needs new blood to avoid boring re-tread fights like Canelo-Plant, which are not appealing to fans, especially when one of the fighters is as inactive as Plant.
A rematch would be interesting if Plant had been active and beaten some good fighters, but he’s not done that. He lost to Benavidez, and that’s the only talented guy he’s fought. Dirrell is completely shot at this late stage in his career, so it wasn’t a big deal that Plant beat him.
“On September 14th, when the bell rings, we’ll see what his energy looks like,” said Caleb Plant to the Stomping Ground YouTube channel, talking about his fight against Trevor McCumby. “I know I’ll be ready for the moment.
“I’ve been in the gym since last June, six days a week. I’m sharp. I’ve been sparring, and on September 14th, you’re going to see the best Caleb Plant. The only thing that motivates me is to win the WBA interim title. I’m not looking past him.
“I don’t care about any other fight. I need to focus on what’s in front of me,” said Plant.
If Plant loses to McCumby, it’s hard to see him returning from this because he’s likely not good enough to beat someone like Christian Mbilli or Diego Pacheco to climb back into position. The inactivity Plant has had makes it hard to predict whether he’ll be victorious against McCumby.
It’s not like Plant was ever a great fighter at 168, even when he was active, but he’s done nothing since his loss to Canelo in 2021. That could be his giant $10 million payday for that fight. Money changes people.
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