Caleb Plant’s trainer, Stephen Edwards, feels that he’ll knock out Edgar Berlanga if the two fighters meet. However, Edwards doesn’t want to look past Plant’s fight against Trevor McCumby on September 14th.
McCumby: The Gateway to Canelo
Edwards questions whether Berlanga (22-0, 17 KOs) will survive his fight against Canelo Alvarez on September 14th without sustaining lasting punishment that could finish him.
He thinks unified super middleweight champion Canelo (61-2-2, 39 KOs) could ruin Berlanga as a fighter, leaving him a wrecked shell of the guy that went into the clash. However, if Berlanga is victorious and if Plant (22-2, 13 KOs) wins his undercard fight against Trevor McCumby (28-0, 21 KOs) on the September 14th card, a battle between them would be the logical clash to make.
The Plant vs. McCumby fight will be for the WBA interim 168-lb title, which will put the winner in a position to challenge the Canelo-Berlanga victor.
Plant has been on the shelf for a long time, sitting inactive for 18 months since his loss to David Benavidez last year, and there’s no way of knowing what he has left. The 32-year-old Plant took many hard shots from the volume puncher Benavidez in that fight and looked badly beaten up at the end.
Not Looking Past September 14th
“We got a lot to go through before that can happen. He’s got get through this fight intact,” said trainer Stephen Edwards to MillCity Boxing about the possibility of Caleb Plant vs. Edgar Berlanga happening next. “That’s a big moment for him [Berlanga] on September 14th.
“It’s too much to say. He’s got to get through September 14th first,” said trainer Edwards about a hypothetical Plant-Berlanga fight. “If he [Berlanga] loses to Canelo bad, he might not want to take two fights in a row as an underdog.”
Fighting Berlanga would be pointless for Plant if Canelo soundly beats the New Yorker. Plant should be targeting the fight against Canelo because he’d be the WBA interim champion, provided he wins his fight against McCumby on the September 14th card.
Plant’s Ultimate Goal: Canelo
“It’s too much to say. I got to concentrate on Trevor McCumby. We can only fight one fight at a time,” said Edwards. “It’s too much to say. This could be a career-altering beating [for Berlanga]. I don’t want to be calling out a guy. He might not be able to fight for eight or nine months after this.”
Even if it’s not a “career-altering beating” Berlanga sustains against Canelo, it would still be a futile fight for Plant to take if he loses that fight. Why fight a beaten Berlanga when you’re in the position to fight Canelo?
Berlanga would need to rebuild his career after the loss, and it’s unlikely that his promoter, Eddie Hearn, would be crazy enough to put him in a risky match against Plant.
Assuming Hearn doesn’t dump Berlanga overboard into the drink, he’ll likely return to matching him against British domestic-level fighters to ramp him up for a second Canelo payday quickly. Hearn would only deviate from that proven path if His Excellency Turki Alalshikh takes an interest in Berlanga fighting Plant or some other risky opponent.
“So, Caleb isn’t going to wait around for him. Who knows? We got to see how the fight goes,” said Edwards. “Caleb and Berlanga? Caleb. A late knockout,” said Edwards, predicting a knockout win for Plant over Berlanga.
Respect for Canelo, Concern for Berlanga
“People like to criticize Canelo, but that’s a great fighter. You got to respect him. He’s about 5’7″, and he’s fighting those giants at 168 and 175. He’s won titles from 154 to 175. That’s a great fighter. I know people who have been in the ring with him, and sparring, and in the gym. That’s a real dude, and he can hurt you,” said Edwards.
Canelo is obviously a great in the sport, and he’s shown that throughout his career. Berlanga is going to have a big size advantage in this fight, and we’ll see if he can use it against the smaller 5’7″ Canelo. If not, Berlanga won’t last long under the heavy shots he will be getting hit with by the Mexican star.
“Berlanga has got to be careful because I think he’s [angering] him and getting under his skin. I think he’s going to hurt him,” said Stephen Edwards.
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