BEVERLY HILLS (Calif.) -- Canelo Alvarez & Caleb Plant began their fight over a month before the scheduled date.
The pair of boxers engaged in a nasty punching match during a press conference at the Beverly Hilton hotel. Alvarez and Plant will fight Nov. 6 in Las Vegas for the unified super-middleweight title. ESPN has Alvarez ranked No. 1 on its pound-for-pound boxer list.
Alvarez and Plant sat nose-to-nose during the stare-down and exchanged words. Alvarez claimed that Plant called him a mother f---er, which sent Alvarez running. Alvarez shoved Plant back. Plant responded with a left hook. Alvarez avoided it, even though it may have grazed his face. Plant then responded with a punching combination.
Alvarez stated, "He started talking about a lot of different things." "I replied. He then said the terrible thing, "You motherf---er." My mother is not here. You can say anything you like to me. "My mother is not here."
Plant suffered a cut below his right eye, while Alvarez had a small cut on his left forearm. Although tensions were high, the press conference was resumed. They had to be separated again before being escorted from the stage.
"He landed first," Alvarez said. "Then I didn't know how to respond, but I did it quickly. I don't know what to do. It's easy for me to do."
Plant said to ESPN that he does not understand why Alvarez was upset by the use of the word. Alvarez had used the term with Demetrius Andrade at a press conference after Alvarez's May fight. Alvarez's clip using the word became viral. "Wasn’t he saying that?" Plant said. Plant said. "But now all of a sudden those words mean something completely different? You're a fool. This doesn't make any sense."
Although it was not clear if Plant's cut would cause a delay in the fight, Alvarez stated that it was a minor one. Plant explained to the media that the cut was caused by the sunglasses he was wearing during the exchange.
Plant stated that the skirmish was a fight. Plant said that if he wants to make it into a fight, then it should be. I'm not a punk. I don't give you the right to do what you like. You can come up here, and they might be scared of you. This is not how it works.
Plant has been shaming Alvarez's camp, run by coach Eddy Reynoso, for several weeks. Oscar Valdez, Alvarez's trainer, tested positive for banned substances but was not suspended. Plant took offense to this. Plant has accused Reynoso's team, including Alvarez, of using performance-enhancing drugs. Alvarez was banned for six months in 2018 because of the banned substance clenbuterol. Alvarez and his colleagues claim that Alvarez ingested it from contaminated meat in Mexico.
"Is it insecurity to take illegal substances?" Plant spoke of Alvarez. Plant asked Alvarez, "Does this stem from insecurity?" That's because illegal drugs are not a sign of confidence. Fear is the root of this fear.
"He might be upset with my, but it's not necessary to be upset about me. He should be angry with himself. There is nothing I have done. These are not my rules or my standards.
Alvarez stated that he had no answer to Plant's barbs and that his words and conduct at the press conference are a reflection of who he really is.
Alvarez stated, "He's very insecure." His body language is clear. That's all I get [from it]. He lost [confidence]. He thought he had lost his confidence already, as he [thought] differently, as if he was going to come into the fight to punish me. He's in danger.
Alvarez (56-11-2, 38KOs), who fought his last fight in May, when he broke Billy Joe Saunders’ orbital bone on the way to a ninth-round TKO. He holds three of four belts in super middleweight.
Plant (12 KOs, 21-0), ESPN's No. The other belt is held by Plant, a 168-pound boxer. His unbeaten record was maintained when he fought Caleb Truax in January.
