Caleb Plant And Rolly Romero Set To Take First Steps On Paths To Redemption
The undercard for Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez’s world title fight with Edgar Berlanga next week may lack the strength in depth of a Riyadh Season show, but with Caleb Plant and Rolando ‘Rolly’ Romero, it does feature two former champions aiming to launch the next phase of their careers.
Former IBF super-middleweight champion Plant (22-2-0 13 KO) will take on the unbeaten yet unproven Trevor McCumby (28-0-0 21 KO) at the T Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, while Romero (15-2-0 13 KO), who recently held the WBA’s super-lightweight title, faces Manuel Jaimes (16-1-1 11 KO).
It was less than three years ago that Plant gave Canelo one of his toughest fights at super-middleweight. With all four belts on the line in November 2021, the Nashville native proved a tough and awkward opponent until an explosive 11th round from Alvarez ended the bout slightly early. At the time of the stoppage, one judge had it 96-94, the second scored it 97-93, and the third’s wildly inaccurate card read 98-92.
Leading up to the undisputed showdown, Plant had strengthened his grip on the IBF belt with three emphatic defenses. Having won the title in January 2019 by defeating then-champion Jose Uzcategui in a comfortable points victory, Plant then dominated Mike Lee six months later with a third-round knockout, and stopped Vincent Feigenbutz in the 10th in May 2020.
For his third defense – and the last fight before he took on Canelo – Plant faced a potential obstacle in former champion Caleb Truax in January 2021 and proceeded to win all 12 rounds.
Losing to Alvarez doesn’t necessarily have to be detrimental to a fighter’s career; in fact, a positive showing could enhance a profile thanks to the giant platform of fighting the pound-for-pound superstar. Plant, and many others, became far better known following their fights (and losses) against Canelo.
Plant Aims To Bounce Back From Benavidez Loss
Still, fighters need results and after bouncing back from the Canelo loss by beating veteran Anthony Dirrell via ninth-round stoppage, Plant came up short once again when faced with a big step up in quality; David Benavidez, then the WBC interim champion, proved too good in December last year on his way to a points win.
No shame in losing to a fighter as skilled as Benavidez, although Plant will be aware that in a stacked super-middleweight division, those are the standards he will likely need to reach if he wants to fulfill his ambition of becoming a two-time champion.
Benavidez may have left for light-heavyweight having grown impatient of waiting for his shot at Canelo, but the likes of Diego Pacheco, Christian Mbilli, and William Scull have emerged as exciting contenders in the time since Plant ruled a quarter of the division.
Before the 32-year-old can make plans to return to the pinnacle of the 168lb class – and he has expressed interest in a rematch with Canelo – he will know anything less than a dominant win over McCumby will make fulfilling those ambitions more challenging.
Romero finds himself in a similar position to Plant. The Las Vegas native is one of the more unique characters in pro boxing and someone with no shortage of confidence in his abilities (“Everyone wants to be me and look like me. Boxing really needs me,” he recently said). However, recent performances and results have made his self-belief start to look a little delusionary.
Romero Remains Full Of Confidence
Like Plant, Romero suffered his first pro loss to an elite fighter, getting knocked out by WBA lightweight champion Gervonta Davis in May 2022. That proved Rolly’s last fight at 135lbs.
He stepped up to super-lightweight in May 2023 to face veteran Ismael Barroso for the vacant WBA title, and while he emerged victorious, it was in controversial and underwhelming circumstances. Romero had been dropped in the third round and was behind on all three scorecards when referee Tony Weeks stepped in and waved off the fight in the ninth despite none of Rolly’s punches fully connecting.
Romero made his first title defense in March and was utterly dominated by Isaac ‘Pitbull’ Cruz, who bullied the champion around the ring until earning the stoppage in the eighth round.
Two stoppage losses either side of a fortunate world title win is hardly the form of a fighter on track to return to world champion status, although it doesn’t seem like Romero minds too much.
“An ideal 2025 would be having kids, traveling a lot, and trying out a lot of new things I haven’t tried before. And just enjoy myself,” he said in an interview with Boxing Scene.
Ever the showman, Romero still wants to “steal the show” on September 14, and like Plant, he will need an impressive win to reboot his career following the loss to Pitbull.
The can’t-afford-to-lose high stakes for both Plant and Romero – not to mention an intriguing co-main bout between WBA middleweight champion Erislandy Lara and the returning Danny Garcia – makes the undercard more exciting than it perhaps looked at first glance.
