Caleb Plant retained its IBF super middleweight title with a unanimous decision to defeat challenger Caleb Truax on Saturday night at Shrine Auditorium and Expo Hall in Los Angeles.
All three judges awarded each round to Plant, who won 120-108 on all three scorecards in a dominant performance in which he was rarely threatened and outscored veteran Truax throughout.
Plant later said he injured his hand at the start of the fight, causing him to be “a little hesitant at times”, but was generally pleased with his performance.
“I want to be the first undisputed middleweight champion of all time,” said Plant, who is eyeing a potential May match between starters Canelo Alvarez and Billy Joe Saunders. “Whoever is in this way doesn’t matter.”
The plant (21-0, 12 KOs) beat Truax with a consistent left jab, mixing in combinations along the way.
Known for his movement and ability to anticipate and evade shots, Plant’s speed proved too high for Truax (31-5-2, 19 KOs), who landed a total of 10 shots in the first three rounds.
Plant began to open a cut on Truax’s face in the middle of the fourth round, while continuously dominating the fight.
The question for Plant now becomes who follows. The winner of a fight with Alvarez-Saunders would make the most sense, as it would become a complete battle for the title of unification, although Alvarez still has to defeat Avni Yildirim on February 27th. Alvarez holds the WBA and WBC belts, while Saunders holds the WBO title.
In a major heavyweight event, Michael Coffie (12-0, 9 KOs) got a clear left uppercut to knock down Darmani Rock (17-1, 12 KOs) for the first time in the third round. Rock rose after a number of 9 and then a few seconds later, Coffie landed a left hook in Rock’s head, knocking him down a second time and ending the fight.
Undefeated 20-year-old Joey Spencer (12-0, 9 KOs) eliminated Isiah Seldon (14-4-1) in the first round of a weightlifting bout, sending him to the mattress twice. Seldon, in less than a round of action, dropped two points for hitting Spencer in the back of the head.