Boxing
Resendiz Upsets Plant, Scraps The Planned Charlo Fight
The plan was set: former world champions Caleb Plant and Jermall Charlo would win their fights in Las Vegas Saturday night to set up a clash between the two super middleweights later this year.
Jermall Charlo did his part. But Plant’s opponent, Armando Resendiz, didn’t follow the game plan.
Resendiz (16-2, 11 KOs), who trains in Los Angeles with Manny Robles, stepped up to super middleweight and a 12 round fight for the first time, and showed out for the Mexican fans at the T-Mobile Arena. Resendiz outhustled, outpunched, and outworked former IBF Super Middleweight champion Plant of Las Vegas (23-3, 14 KOs) to win a split decision victory.
The scores were 116-112 twice for Resendiz from judges Max DeLuca and Steve Weisfeld, while judge David Sutherland saw it 115-113 for Plant.
Resendiz Wears Plant Down
From the opening bell, Resendiz gave Plant room to work, letting him dictate the pace. Plant started out smartly behind a jab, at a measured pace. Within a few rounds, Resendiz began closing the distance and initiating more of the action. Referee Harvey Dock repeatedly warned Resendiz about leading with his head as he closed in. He was fortunate to avoid having a point taken, given the scorecards.
Resendiz began to work to the body of Plant, adding in good right and left hooks. The momentum of the fight visibly turned after the halfway point. As he has in previous fights, Plant began to slow down, just as the relentless, beautifully conditioned Resendiz started lighting him up. Resendiz took a page from the playbook of David Benavidez Jr., who lost the early rounds in his fight against Plant but came on strong in the second half of the fight.
Resendiz didn’t stop Plant, but he effectively disarmed him as Plant ran out of steam. Trainer Stephen “Breadman” Edwards told Plant he had to win the 11th and 12th rounds. The truth is, Plant needed a knockout to win. He didn’t get either.
The 26-year-old Resendiz had a knockout win over Jarrett Hurd, but not a lot on his resume to make anyone think he could deliver a winning performance. Now, Resendiz is 2-0 over former champions.
Resendiz: ‘I Believed In Myself’
Armando Resendiz never let up and eventually outworked and outlanded Caleb Plant in the second half of their fight to win. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions
Resendiz said he knew Plant would underestimate him, along with everyone else. “I don’t blame him. I knew everybody was going to be against me. And I don’t blame them because on paper of course, it was like that.
“But I believed in myself. My corner believed in me, and we did exactly what we thought.,” said the elated father-to-be Resendiz, who learned just days before the fight he would be a father for the first time.
I wasn’t really worried because I left it all to God. I knew I was going to win. I didn’t worry at all. I knew it was a tough fight. It was a great fight.”
Robles, however, was braced for bad news after seeing his fighters Terrell Gausha and Serhii Bohachuk come out at the losing end of split decisions. Finally, though, Robles heard good news from announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr., but admitted he was sweating it.
Plant: ‘The Judges Saw It The Other Way’
Caleb Plant felt he worked hard enough behind his jab to win. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions
Plant said he felt the fight was close. “In a close fight, sometimes it swings the other way. I feel like I was in control enough, using the whole ring, using my jab. But the judges saw it the other way. What do you do, you know?”
Plant admitted Resendiz caught him with a good overhand right but denied being hurt or stunned. “Disappointed, obviously. I felt like I did good. I used my jab, used the whole ring, was patient. I wasn’t the better man I guess. I thought I did enough to pull it off. Plant said he would regroup and be back.
But it won’t be against Charlo. Resendiz said he’d gladly step in. ““I’m ready to fight anyone, whoever the public wants.”
CompuBox numbers show how Armando Resendiz outworked Caleb Plant to win.
Resendiz swept the last six rounds of the fight on two of the three scorecards. According to CompuBox, Resendiz landed 16 of 50 punches per round, while the former champ landed just nine of 42 per round. Resendiz had a 109-70 edge in power shots landed.
Resendiz knew it was the opportunity of a lifetime, with nothing to lose and everything to gain. He came in with a positive attitude, and he had the partisan Mexican crowd behind him in Las Vegas. Was it an upset on the level of Douglas over Tyson? No, but certainly it was as big an upset as any minor contender over a champion.
Jermell Charlo Does His Part With TKO Win In Return
In the ten round co-main event, Jermall Charlo (34-0, 23 KOs) did his part with a successful return in his first fight in 18 months, scoring a sixth round TKO win over an outgunned Thomas “Cornflake” LaManna (39-6-1, 18 KOs) behind knockdowns in rounds three, four, and five before the ringside physician waved off the fight.
“I’m back. You got to go through things to get better. It’s a better me,” said Charlo of his performance, who said his goal now is “To stay relevant, no more dark places, and keep my head straight. And just want to encourage everyone in the world, keep God first. Keep God first.”
LaManna, who came up in weight for the fight, showed the effects of Charlo’s punches by the end of the second round, merely from his jab.
Jermall Charlo high stepped to the neutral corner after the first of three knockdowns against Thomas LaManna. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions
Charlo dropped LaManna hard halfway through the third round with a hard right hand, as Charlo high stepped to the neutral corner. Charlo did a veteran’s job of cutting off the ring to keep LaManna pinned against the ropes, a place LaManna didn’t need to be. LaManna didn’t run, standing in and making it to the end of the round.
LaManna’s trainer kept telling him Charlo was “slow,” but for a slow opponent, Charlo was landing a lot of hard shots. Fighting at super middleweight for the first time turned out to be a big ask of LaManna, who took the punches as well as could be expected. LaManna took a shot in the fourth round, and initially it seemed LaManna stayed upright.
But after review, it was called a knockdown as LaManna’s knee connected with the canvas. A check left hook in the fifth hurt LaManna, and he got dropped a third time halfway through the round, banging his glove on the canvas in frustration. Still, LaManna showed no fear of Charlo, winging and landing a few flashy punches causing the crowd to react.
Referee Mark Nelson circled the pair like a hawk. He didn’t end up making the call, as the ringside physician advised Nelson to stop the fight after the fifth round. LaManna protested, but it was only a matter of time before LaManna was dropped for good, potentially hurt for no reason. Charlo was a little frustrated as well, denied the knockout.
Charlo landed 67 of 210 punches thrown (32%), with 23 power punches. LaManna landed just 19 of 150 punches thrown (13%) with five power punches.
Charlo Still Wants Fight With Plant
Jermall Charlo says he’d still like to fight Caleb Plant. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions
“I was more so focused on this fight, getting this fight out the way. But yeah, they know what it is. They know my man, I want my lick back. You know what’s going down,” said Charlo of his planned collision with Plant. But it’s up in the air now at best.
“Jermall Charlo is back!” declared his brother Jermell. “It’s about timing. It’s about getting back on. It’s about having the fun, and it’s about being here right now.”
After Plant’s loss, Charlo said he’s still interested in facing Plant. “He still deserves a fight with me, and I still deserve a fight with him. I think all the fans in the world still will tune in to a fight with Jermall Charlo and Caleb Plant.”
It’s the bigger money fight than a matchup with Resendiz, given the history between them and their resumes. But Resendiz certainly deserves a shot, whether against Plant or another champion or serious contender. Resendiz vs. Bektimir Melikuziev, anyone?
Hernandez Shut Down Davis In Cuban Style
Yoenli Feliciano Hernandez delivered a power punching destruction of Kyrone Davis. Photo: Ryan Hafey, Premier Boxing Champions
Middleweight contender Yoenli Feliciano Hernandez of Cuba (8-0, 7 KOs) left no margin for Kyrone “Shut It Down” Davis of Delaware (19-4-1, 6 KOs) to gain any ground, delivering a beatdown to shut down the surging Davis in a dominating performance. Scores were all 100-89, a complete shutout plus a knockdown for Hernandez.
Hernandez landed 217 total punches to just 64 for Davis, and 153 power punches to a mere 23 for Davis in ten rounds.
Davis, who won the opportunity to face Hernandez with an upset win over highly regarded prospect Elijah Garcia, had nothing to push the powerful Hernandez back, save a decent chin. Although he suffered a knockdown in round two from a right and left hook combination, Davis pushed on and made Hernandez work for the win, his first decision as a pro. Call it a moral victory, but Davis’s team should have considered pulling him out.
The middleweight division is looking for a shot of adrenaline, and although it’s early Hernandez shows promise as an exciting talent to watch.
Lucero Sends Valenzuela Home Early
Super welterweight Isaac “La Bestia” Lucero of La Paz, Mexico (17-0, 13 KOs) blew right through Omar Valenzuela of Tijuana (23-1, 20 KOs), dishing out the punishment to force the referee to stop the bout at 2:57 of the second round.
Valenzuela took the fight on short notice, his first fight outside Mexico. Lucero came at him like a buzzsaw, and he simply couldn’t withstand the offense coming at him. Lucero scored a knockdown in the second round and then came on even stronger to close out the fight.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity. I want to thank everyone. I have been dreaming of this moment, and here we are, thank God,” said Lucero. “Once I landed those shots, my big shots, I knew it was just a matter of time.”
Moving forward, Lucero said fans can expect “I’m going to prepare even better, train hard, and take it fight by fight.”
“I think it’s huge to come to the United States and make a name, it’s huge,” said Lucero’s Hall of Fame trainer, Bob Santos. Lucero has just started working with Santos, and the partnership is already bearing fruit.
