Armando Resendiz Stuns Caleb Plant, Shakes Up Super Middleweight Picture

Heading into Saturday night at Michelob Ultra Arena in Las Vegas, the script was already written Caleb Plant would dispatch a lesser-known opponent and move on to a high-stakes showdown with undefeated Jermall Charlo. But boxing, as it so often does, had other plans and a 26-year-old underdog named Armando Resendiz had no intention of following the narrative.

Resendiz (16-2, 11 KOs), a relatively unheralded contender from Mexico, pulled off one of the year’s biggest upsets by defeating former IBF super middleweight champion Caleb Plant (23-3, 14 KOs) via split decision. The judges scored it 116-112, 116-112 for Resendiz, and 115-113 for Plant.

Plant entered the ring a massive 25-1 betting favorite. But by the time the final bell rang, it was Resendiz whose hand was raised. Resendiz played spoiler ruining any immediate future plans of  Plant vs. Charlo. “I knew everybody was going to be against me,” Resendiz said through an interpreter. “But I believed in myself, and my corner believed in me. I didn’t worry about the split decision—I left it all to God.”

For the first half of the fight, Plant looked in control, using his jab to keep distance and landing crisp short hooks. But Resendiz ramped up the pressure late, walking Plant down and pounding away with power shots to the body. A cut over Plant’s right eye added to the visual evidence of damage inflicted, and by the final rounds, the momentum had clearly shifted.

“I felt like I had enough control, using my jab,” Plant said afterward. “The judges saw it the other way. What can you do? I wasn’t the better man tonight, I guess.”

In the co-main event, Jermall Charlo (34-0, 22 KOs) looked sharp in his return to the ring after a lengthy layoff, stopping Thomas LaManna in the sixth round. Charlo dropped LaManna twice before the ringside doctor waved off the fight just one second into round six. It was a strong statement from Charlo, who made his 168-pound debut after two fights in the past four years.

Originally viewed as a tune-up for a bigger bout, Resendiz’s upset now reshuffles the super middleweight deck. With Plant on the outside looking in, a Resendiz-Charlo fight could emerge as an unexpected but highly compelling matchup. Whatever comes next, Armando Resendiz made one thing clear Saturday night: he’s no stepping stone and the super middleweight division just got a whole lot more interesting.