Canelo Alvarez reigns supreme in the super-middleweight division. After the fight against Jaime Munguia, the undisputed super-middleweight champion sits pretty on a pile of cash, and only another big money fight will lure him out of his den. One contender looking to square up against him in the ring is Edgar Berlanga.
According to Boxing Scene, the New York-born boxer’s current promoter, Eddie Hearn, has promised him the fight, possibly in September. After all, he is the mandatory challenger to Alvarez’s WBA title. “I’m 100 percent confident. I know it’s gonna happen. I’m the mandatory for Canelo in September,” he told Boxing Scene.
Caleb Plants has his say!
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However, there is another suitor. The former super-middleweight champion Caleb Plant is hot in pursuit of the undefeated super-middleweight boxer. On that note, to book a fight with Plant, by throwing away the opportunity to share the stage with Alvarez, seems like career suicide. Therefore, Berlanga is trying every trick in the book to avoid a fight with the 31-year-old boxer, even to the point of turning into a matchmaker.
After suffering two significant losses against heavy hitters of the super-middleweight division – Canelo and David Benavidez, ‘Sweethands’ is having a tough time picking his next opponent. His fall from grace in the 168-pound weight category is hurting his pride. Understandably, Berlanga’s suggestion for Caleb to fight 37-year-old former middleweight champion Daniel Jacobs has frustrated him.
On X, when Berlanga tweeted, “Stop ducking smoke too !!!! My brother @DanielJacobs wanted to tax that a** @SweetHandsPlant”, Plant responded, stating, “You a match maker now? You don’t need to sign me up for ANY other fights unless it’s a fight with YOU. What kind of lame sh*t is this? the more you talk the more of a pu**y you make urself out to be. You keep talking about ppl I’ve fought or should fight but not that you’ll fight.”
You a match maker now? You don’t need to sign me up for ANY other fights unless it’s a fight with YOU. What kind of lame shit is this? the more you talk the more of a pussy you make urself out to be. You keep talking about ppl I’ve fought or should fight but not that you’ll fight https://t.co/tNkuxcjc5W
— CalebPlant (@SweetHandsPlant) June 6, 2024
Not too long ago, Berlanga had a confrontation with Plant during the weigh-in of the Canelo-Munguia Cinco De Mayo weekend fight. Speaking about the incident to Fight Hub TV, Berlanga said, “Why are you here, brother? You got knocked out by Canelo, you got your a** kicked by Benavidez, and you want to be in Mexican and Latino territory? You’re just looking for a promotion. You’re looking for leverage right now,” he said. “You can’t f*ck with me. If you fight me, I’m going to end your career,” he added.
Berlanga further implied that Plant is an inferior fighter compared to him. “We talked about the sparring we had when I was 17. I was like 18 and had two pro fights, and I hit him with a body shot and stopped him. He’s a b*tch.” Clearly, the fighter doesn’t consider “Sweethands” as a serious contender. For now, he is putting all his chips on the Canelo fight.
Meanwhile, Rick Glaser, a boxing matchmaker based out of New York, took to X to report that Plant “turned down 1.25 million to fight 37 year old Danny Jacobs”. Although the two had been throwing shade at each other since 2020, Jacobs’ age and waning star power might have discouraged Plant from picking him as his opponent. Now, that ship has sailed too as Jacobs is slated to fight Shane Mosley Jr in July. That being said, does Plant have the luxury to be so nitpicky considering his current position in the 168-pound weight division power dynamics? Interestingly, another boxing sensation backed out of a fight against Plant, even though it seemed set in stone.
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Even a slap couldn’t translate into a fight..
Do you remember when Caleb Plant slapped former WBC Middleweight champion Jermall Charlo at the weigh-in of the Terence Crawford-Errol Spence Junior fight? The video went viral sparking paper talk about a possible fight on the cards in the near future.
Returning from a 29-month layoff, Charlo only fought Jose Benavidez Junior last year. A fight against Caleb Plant next would have set the stage for a perfect revenge drama. Unfortunately, even that matchup amounted to nothing in the end. Talking to Boxing Scene at the beginning of March, the 31-year-old boxer said, “It doesn’t look like that’s going to happen next…..You have to talk to [Charlo] about that. That was the fight that I was looking to hopefully get next, but it’s not always up to me. There’s a lot that goes into making a big fight like that.”
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Plant also has plans for a rematch with Canelo to reclaim the belts he lost to him. However, it seems like a distant dream considering he is quite low down the pecking order. Who should Plant fight next? Will he ever be able to bounce back to the zenith of the super-middleweight division? Let us know in the comment section below.