By Allan Fox: Canelo Alvarez says he’s put his slapping incident with Caleb ‘Sweethands’ Plant behind him, and he’s willing to face off with him this week ahead of their undisputed 168-lb championship fight this Saturday, November 6th, at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.
Showtime might want to ensure they have plenty of security on hand during the final press conference and weigh-in if the fighters come together for a face-off.
Will Canelo attack Plant again?
If Canelo chooses to attack Plant in reaction to his trash-talking, the last thing they need is for an injury to occur.
During the face-off for their September 4th kick-off press conference, Canelo (56-1-2, 38 KOs) first shoved Plant hard and then slapped him when he retaliated with a left hook slap.
Interestingly, Plant had his hands behind his back when Canelo shoved him hard.
Usually, when a fighter has his hands behind their backs, as Plant did, it’s a sign that they’re not looking to start brawling. Plant was defenseless when Canelo shoved him and made the Mexican star look like he was taking a cheap shot.
Canelo to attack a fighter with their hands behind their backs, as he did with Plant, shows that he’d lost his cool completely and was willing to take a cheap shot.
The excuse given by Canelo for initiating his attack on Plant (21-0, 12 KOs) was that he’s called him a “mother f***er,” and that was “crossing the line,” as far as he was concerned.
At the time, many believed that Canelo had taken what Plant had said literally due to English being his second language. Later, the media discovered that Canelo had used the same insult against Demetrius Andrade and Daniel Jacobs.
Consequently, it’s challenging to know Canelo’s actual reasons for attacking Plant during the face-off. Was it because of his “mother f***er” insult, or was it an earlier insult he threw at him by calling him a “drug cheat” due to his positive test for the banned PED clenbuterol in 2018?
Canelo reflects on slapping Plant
“I don’t know, and I don’t care. If there’s a face-off, okay,” said Canelo Alvarez when asked if there will be a face-off with Caleb Plant. “I have nothing with him, and what happened in LA happened. So, every action is a reaction, so that is my reaction, but I have nothing for him.
“Maybe,” said Canelo when asked if Plant would try and get into his head again by getting him angry.
“He already did try, and it really bad for him,” said Alvarez’s trainer Eddy Reynoso on Plant, trying to get Canelo upset.
“I’m going to go in the ring, and I don’t have anything to prove to him,” said Canelo about Plant. “He’s going to feel what I have to prove, but to him, I don’t have anything to prove.
“Earlier in Canelo’s career, he would get angry about being hit in a way that he didn’t expect, or if something happened, he would get angry,” said Canelo’s coach Eddy Reynoso. “But now with the experience, the experience factor is huge, now Canelo is on an even keel, and it really doesn’t affect him.”
I’m not sure if Reynoso had his eyes open during the Los Angeles press conference, but it sure did look like Canelo got angry and attacked after Plant slapped him.
It shouldn’t have been unexpected for Canelo to be slapped by Plant because, after all, he is the one that initiated the entire situation by shoving Caleb when he had his hands behind his back.
‘Sweethands’ Plant on edge
“You can see that Caleb is a little bit on edge, but he’s the underdog; everyone is expecting him to lose,” said Paulie Malignaggi to iFL TV. “That fight is always on edge; he’s out to prove something.
“So he’s always going to be a little bit more unrelated and edgy because he’s angry.
“Caleb has been in some big fights, but not this magnitude of a fight. Caleb, early in the fight, he’s going to have to stay calm. Otherwise, his slick style won’t be as slick,” said Malignaggi.
Plant looks like he’s got a chip on his shoulder because everyone is counting him out in this fight, so he’s naturally on edge and looking less than confident.
This kind of stuff usually means nothing because nervous fighters generally let their hands go in fights, and they don’t avoid contact. Often, the more nervous fighters tend to do well, especially early in contests when they pounce on their more confident opponents.
