Canelo Álvarez vs. Caleb Plant Live Blog

Live updates, analysis and scores from Álvarez vs. Plant at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS — Canelo Álvarez defeated Caleb Plant Saturday night via an 11th-round knockout, making him the undisputed super middleweight champion. 

See below for unofficial scoring, round-by-round recap and pre-fight coverage.

Round-by-Round Analysis

8:28 PT — Anthems are done, both fighters are headed to the ring …

Both fighters are in the ring. Here we go …

ROUND 1: Plant comes out trying to work the jab early. Canelo blocks. Full minute goes by without Canelo throwing a punch. Canelo sticks a short jab. Chopping right connects by Canelo. Plant continues to work the jab. Lets go of a soft right hand. Very slow round for both fighters. Lean to Plant based on activity. 10–9, Plant.

ROUND 2: Canelo advances, Plant continues to paw with the jab. Canelo fires off a combination, his first. Plant sticking that jab through. Canelo still trying to find the range. Plant flicks the jab out some more. Close round. 10–9, Plant.

ROUND 3: Plant continues to move well, counterpunching. Canelo lands an overhand right. Plant shakes his head. Plant’s hands are very quick. Canelo digs to the body. Plant with a quick counter right. Canelo let his hands go a little more in that round. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 4: Plant with a double tap to the body. Canelo rears back for a left hook. Canelo pins Plant to the ropes, wings a combination. He’s starting to get comfortable now. He’s still looking for that distance. Good right hand by Canelo. Another, though Plant turned with it. Plant showing just a touch of fatigue in this round. Big shot from Canelo. Clear round for Canelo. 10–9. Canelo.

ROUND 5: Canelo stands between rounds, pacing in his corner. Two lefts by Canelo, and Plant responds with two of his own. Plant on the defensive. He’s avoiding big shots but not landing many of his own. Referee warns both fighters, I believe for holding, mid round. Close round, but give it to Canelo. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 6: Canelo continues to stay on his feet between rounds. Plant operating again behind the jab. Canelo hunts him down, whips a combination in the corner. Plant holds. He’s starting to hold a lot now. Plant tries a right hand. Canelo belts him with a combination, best of the night. Crowd erupts. Left to the head by Canelo. Good shot. Plant is definitely slowing down. Canelo slips another left in. Canelo drops his hands and just walks Plant down. Easy round for Canelo. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 7: These are the rounds Canelo tends to get aggressive. Looping left by Canelo. Plant lunges in with a right. Canelo corners Plant, fires off a combination. Canelo hopping around in the ring now. Canelo hangs on the ropes, almost daring Plant to let his hands go. Plant won’t do it. Three punch combination by Canelo, and he wins that round. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 8: Plant back on his jab. Canelo digs to the body. Plant back in the corner. Gets in a defensive position, avoids the big shot. Canelo catches Plant dipping, lands a left. Counter uppercut by Canelo. Canelo lands to the body. Plant counters with a jab. Plant is landing some jabs, but he isn’t landing any power shots. Canelo is. Another round for Canelo. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 9: Canelo finally takes a seat between rounds. Canelo still stalking. Plant just won’t let that right hand go. There’s a right by Plant. Taps Canelo with a few jabs. Plant back in the corner, but counters out of it. Plant is having some success when he stands his ground. But too often he is on the move. Close round. 10–9, Plant.

ROUND 10: Plant comes out and throws a quick four punch combination. Maybe some urgency here. Canelo corners him again. Plant holds. Canelo moves forward. Plant holds again. Canelo wings a shot to the body. Three punch combination by Canelo. Plant throws a few of his own. Another close round. 10–9, Canelo.

ROUND 11: Plant needs to fight to win. He’s fighting to survive now. Canelo digs to the body with a combination. The two get tied up along the ropes. Big uppercut by Canelo. Down goes Plant! He’s wobbly! Stumbles to a corner! Referee letting it continue! Here comes Canelo, unloading. Down goes Plant again! Referee waves it off —11th round stoppage for Canelo. 

Pre-Fight Coverage

We’re back again, blog readers, ringside in Las Vegas, this time for the super middleweight unification fight between Saul “Canelo” Álvarez and Caleb Plant. Álvarez (56-1-2) and Plant (21–0) will attempt to crown the first undisputed 168-pound champion in the four belt era. A few things to know before we begin.

• Álvarez has been as big as a 12–1 favorite by some oddsmakers, with most predicting an Álvarez knockout. While Plant enters the ring with a sterling record, his opposition to this point has been painfully weak. Álvarez, meanwhile, has one of the best resumes in boxing, with wins over high level talents Erislandy Lara, Gennadiy Golovkin and Daniel Jacobs.
• Something I’ve been hearing from a member of Plant’s team: the magnitude of this moment is beginning to resonate with Plant. Plant has not only never fought anyone on Álvarez’s level, he has never fought on this big a stage. Plant’s last fight, against Caleb Truax, was fought behind closed doors. The fight before was in Nashville, near Plant’s hometown. Some 16,000-plus fans will pack the MGM Grand Garden Arena tonight, virtually all here for Canelo. How Plant handles the environment will be a variable in this fight.
• Plant’s revival of the positive drug test Álvarez popped in 2018 has added a layer of intrigue to the fight. Plant’s verbal assault has clearly crept under Álvarez’s skin; Álvarez shoved Plant in September, sparking a brief press conference brawl, and the two jawed at each other at the weigh-in on Friday. Álvarez has declared that this matchup is personal. Don’t expect Álvarez, one of boxing’s savviest fighters in the ring, to be taken out of his game plan. But expect a little more aggressiveness from him tonight.