IBF World super middleweight champion Jose Uzcategui (28-2, 23 KOs) will be defending his title next Sunday, January 13 against unbeaten highly ranked #2 IBF contender Caleb Plant (17-0, 10 KOs) on Premier Boxing Champions on FS1 at the Microsoft Theater, in Los Angeles, California. The fight is scheduled for 12 rounds. The Uzcategui-Plant televised card begins at 8:00 p.m. ET / 5:00 p.m. PT on FS1.
In the co-feature, unbeaten super bantamweight contender Brandon ‘The Heartbreaker’ Figueroa (17-0, 11 KOs) will be facing former 2-time 122 pound world title challenger Moises Flores (25-1, 17 KOs) in a 10 round fight. The co-feature bout might wind up having the most action on the card, since Caleb Plant, the opponent for Uzcategui, is a pure boxer, who will likely be using the hit and move style the entire 12 rounds on Sunday night. That fight could be tough on the eyes if Uzcategui can’t trap Plant and force him to fight the way he did against Andre Dirrell in their rematch last March. Uzcategui forced Dirrell to fight him, and the results were positive.
The 26-year-old Plant, who goes by the nickname ‘Sweethands,’ does not have much punching power to speak of, and his temperament is not that of slugger. Plant’s first instinct when fighting someone with power that is pressuring him is to reverse gears, circle the ring and look to jab from a safe distance. Plant is not someone that is going to stand his ground and fight it out until the bitter end. That’s why it’s imperative that Uzcategui, 28, use his wheels to chase Plant down. If Uzcategui fails to cut the ring off to force the action, Plant will stay on the outside and jab and pot shot his way to a dull 12 round decision victory on Sunday night. Plant isn’t a combination puncher. When he does throw power shots, he prefers the single pot style that we’ve seen from other pure boxers like Floyd Mayweather Jr. It’s going to be very hard for Uzcategui to win this fight if he can’t keep Plant from fighting with his style. For Uzcategui to win this fight, he’s got to impose his will on the fleet of foot Plant. As long as this fight lasts, Plant is going to be trying to box Uzcategui’s head off, and win rounds by being clever.