Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez warns Caleb Plant he ‘will feel something different’ in unification fight in Las Vegas as rivals trade verbal blows in tense weigh-in
- Canelo and Plant kept aside after skirmishes in press conference in September
- Fighters meet on Sunday with WBA, WBC, WBO and IBF belts on the line
- Winner will become only sixth man to be a fully unified champion in any division
- Canelo is the bookmakers’ favourite but Plant is confident of pulling off upset
Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has warned Caleb Plant he ‘will feel something different’ as the two fighters stepped up their war of words in a tense weigh-in late on Friday night.
The Mexican and the American meet at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas in the early hours of Sunday morning with the former’s WBA, WBC and WBO belts and the latter’s IBF title on the line.
Alvarez came in at 168lb (12 stones) – the super middleweight limit – with Plant weighing in at 167lb (11.9 stones), before both boxers dialled up the rhetoric ahead of their unification fight.
Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez (left) and Caleb Plant were kept apart at their weigh-in on Friday
Their press conference in September had ended in a scuffle when Alvarez punched Plant
Alvarez (56-1-2, 38 KOs) was adamant he would do his talking in the ring.
‘I say, “You will see tomorrow. It’s time”,’ he told Showtime Sports, which is broadcasting the fight exclusively in the U.S.
‘I don’t need to say anything. It’s time. He will feel something different, believe me.
‘Like I say before, for every action, there’s a reaction. I feel blessed, I feel motivated for all my fans. It means a lot.’
Alvarez (56-1-2, 38 KOs) came in at 12 stones for the fight – the super middleweight limit
Meanwhile, Plant (21-0, 12 KOs) seemed to relish the hostile environment generated by his opponent’s fans and insisted he was his ‘destiny’ to strip Alvarez of his belts.
‘We agree to disagree, we’re going to find out Saturday night though,’ said the American, who at 29 is two years younger than the Mexican.
‘I promise you that. I love it, you can cheer for him all you want, you can boo for me all you want.
‘It’s easy to sit in those seats, it ain’t easy to stand up here. Remember that. I was born for this. This is my destiny.’
Plant (21-0, 12 KOs) was slightly lighter than his opponent, weighing 167lb
The two fighters were kept well apart at the weigh-in after they traded blows in their first press conference back in September, when Alvarez opened a cut on Plant’s cheek after punching his sunglasses through.
There were no skirmishes on Friday with the two fighters joined at the weigh-in by former heavyweight champion of the world Mike Tyson.
The winner on Sunday night will become only the sixth man in the four-belt era to be a fully unified champion in any division, following in the footsteps of Bernard Hopkins, Jermain Taylor, Terence Crawford, Oleksandr Usyk and Josh Taylor.