By Charles Jay
It would be fair to say that among many engaged in boxing betting, Canelo Alvarez is considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world.
Does Caleb Plant have enough to topple that?
Some BetAnySports patrons may be giving him a chance, and we’ll find out for certain on Saturday night as these two square off at the MGM Grand Garden, starting somewhere between 11 and 11:30 PM ET.
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Canelo Boxing Betting — So what’s at stake?
Well, aside from that rather mythical pound-for-pound title (for Alvarez anyway), these two will be fighting for the super middleweight (168-pound) belts as recognized by the IBF, WBO, WBA and WBC. In other words, it is for the undisputed crown.
Plant (21-0, 12 KO’s) has the IBF title, and he has made three defenses of it, the latest against a pretty good opponent, Caleb Truax. But he hasn’t faced nearly the caliber of people Canelo has encountered.
Alvarez has held titles at 154, 160, 168 and 175 pounds. Last time he was in the ring, he annexed the WBO belt with an eighth-round TKO of Billy Joe Saunders, a southpaw and slick boxer.
Canelo (56-1-2, 38 KO’s) has lost only to Floyd Mayweather, and has scored victories over a lot of top names, including Miguel Cotto, Austin Trout, Amir Khan, Gennady Golovkin, Julio Cesar Chavez Jr., Daniel Jacobs and Sergey Kovalev.
Canelo Boxing Betting — What are the odds?
At BetAnySports, you can see that Canelo is a sizable favorite:
Canelo Alvarez -1100
Caleb Plant +650
Over 9.5 Rounds -130
Under 9.5 Rounds +100
Canelo Boxing Betting — What should we expect from Plant?
Most people who have seen Alvarez know what to expect from him. He’ll be boxing, but also coming forward, and he will make a point to throw punches to the body.
But many casual fans will be seeing Plant for the first time, as the bout is available through DAZN. He is slick and has very fast hands. He puts together combinations very well, and when he devotes himself to getting the jab through,can score points with that as well.
He will also hold his left hand down, and thus he will throw a left hook from angles that might be difficult for some opponents to deal with. That, and his speed, will definitely be an asset for him, inasmuch as he is the bigger man by nature and has a height advantage of about four inches.
Canelo Boxing Betting — How will this play out?
The problem with Plant is that with all of his talent, he is not a very big puncher. And so, in taking a big leap up in level of competition, there is even more of a concern about him being able to command respect with his power.
And if he can’t grab that respect early, he isn’t going to keep Canelo from coming forward. Sure, he’s got the height and reach edge, but we imagine Canelo can take the edge and reverse it. He’ll do it by getting through to the body in a way in which Plant may not be familiar.
And I am not overwhelmed by the way Plant has fought when he is backing up. Remember that without the ability to really be an authoritative puncher, Plant is going to have to out-hustle Alvarez for a full twelve rounds, and that is a tough task.
My guess is that Plant may have his way for a round or two, while Canelo is feeling him out, but after that he’s going to be uncomfortable for about every second in there. Since we aren’t crazy about the value at -1100, this becomes a question of whether we expect Plant to last all that long.
We just don’t know how durable he really is.
But it’s difficult to envision him not getting nailed with a number of body shots and overhand rights. If you bet this at under 9.5 rounds, essentially what you’re doing is getting an even money wager on Canelo knocking him out, if he comes into the ring feeling sharp.
Wager on this bout with the folks at BetAnySports. And don’t forget that on Sunday, you can engage in proposition betting to your heart’s content on all of the NFL games using “Prop Builder.”…….Keep in mind that if you are using Bitcoin to deposit, it’s fast and easy and you pay NO transaction fees!
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