CALEB Plant has admitted that while his next card slot alongside rival Jermall Charlo is no accident, he only has eyes for Jose Armando Resendiz and will take care of business accordingly on May 31.
Speaking over a video link to Mauro Ranallo and Abner Mares during last night’s broadcast of Tim Tszyu-Joey Spencer on Amazon Prime, Plant stated that Charlo grabbing his beard at the Spence-Crawford weigh-in in 2023 was a step too far. ‘Sweethands’ is now ready to deal with him after they’ve both taken care of business in Las Vegas in separate bouts.
“I’ve explained it a couple of times in interviews, but basically him thinking he was going to bully me and he was pulling on my beard. I pushed him off and told him to stop,” Plant explained on “slap gate”.
“The smartest thing he could think to do was to do it again. You can’t walk around just letting people put hands on you when and where they want. That’s a no-fly zone for me. It’s unfortunate, it’s not something that I’m trying to brag about, or I don’t feel like it makes me tough or cool.
“But at the same time I’m going to defend myself when somebody steps to me in that manner. It’s no coincidence [same fight date, Charlo will face Thomas LaManna]. Hopefully he can handle business and we’ll get it on later in the year. Right now, I’m fully focused on the task in front of me, though. I don’t care about Charlo. I don’t care about any of the other super middleweights. I care about handling business.”
As Plant agreed with former world champion Abner Mares, overlooking the next opponent in favour of a more lucrative foe down the road is a well-trodden path to defeat. Dealing with Resendiz in a manner similar to how Plant dealt with his last opponent, Trevor McCumby, is first on the agenda.
In their September meeting, Plant climbed off the deck, made the necessary adjustments and stopped his unbeaten foe in round nine to record stoppage number 14 and learn a little bit more about his own strength and resolve.
“Every fight is a different puzzle, so after that puzzle, just being able to walk away with that experience. The knockdown, getting hit on the arm at round four -it was counted as a knockdown- was a great reminder and a reiteration to stay calm, stay cool through the good and the bad that happens in boxing. Stay focused on the game plan, and we did just that. Made a few adjustments, made them quickly and as soon as we did, it was good night.”
Further fight adjustments will be needed for his next opponent, Mexican brawler Resendiz. Described by Plant as a “tough Latino fighter coming to win”, Resendiz may have already displayed his career level and it’s not at the point Plant has previously reached.
“I know he’s coming with a lot of fire. He’s got a couple of good fights under his belt that I’m sure he’s got experience from stopping Jarrett Hurd. And I know that he had a big back-and-forth fight with Elijah Garcia. He’s moved up to super-middleweight since then and is ranked in the top 15. I’m excited to let that bell ring and do what I do best.”
As a former belt holder who has only lost to Canelo and David Benavidez, 2025 is likely to be a pivotal year for Plant. As the Tennessee native explained to Ranallo, nothing less than a one-step-at-a-time mentality will suffice.
“Man, I just [need to] have an impressive win against Armando Resendiz. And then, you know, later this year, me and Charlo get after it,” confirmed Plant.
