Nashville native Caleb Plant wins with one-punch knockout of Anthony Dirrell in boxing return

Caleb Plant won by a one-punch ninth-round knockout against Anthony Dirrell on Saturday night at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York, in a 168-pound super middleweight boxing match.

Nashville native Plant (22-1, 13 knockouts), a former International Boxing Federation super middleweight champion who lost that belt to Canelo Alvarez in a unification fight in his previous bout, controlled momentum against Dirrell (34-3, 25 knockouts). Plant threw a hard left hook to knock out Dirrell, setting him up with left hook to the body to bury him after all the harsh words in the buildup to the fight.

Two-time former world champion Dirrell, 167 3/4 pounds, made the fight rough early on. He wrestled Plant to the canvas in the third round and was aggressive in close. Plant wrestled down Dirrell in the eighth round The speed from Plant, 6-foot-1 and 167 1/4 pounds, was a major factor as he out-landed Dirrell and made good use of his left jab.

Plant, 30, landed good combinations to begin both the third and fourth rounds against 6-2 Dirrell. Plant landed a good left hook in the fifth round, but Dirrell, 38, had a couple good flurries to follow.

Plant entered the bout rated No. 1 by the IBF and World Boxing Council, and No. 3 by the World Boxing Association. Dirrell was ranked No. 4 in the WBA and WBC, and No. 11 by the IBF.

PLANT:Ashland City native Caleb Plant not worried about future ahead of fight with Anthony Dirrell

PLANT'S RETURN:Caleb Plant, Ashland City native, ready to get back in the ring with same mindset, new coach

PREVIOUS FIGHT:Canelo Alvarez batters Caleb Plant, wins by 11th-round KO

PLANT:Caleb Plant boxes for world title and daughter's memory

Plant, a Nashville native who grew up in Ashland City, lost his his previous fight by 11th-round technical knockout to Canelo Alvarez in November 2021.

It was the first loss of his career. He earned his IBF title in a 2019 unanimous decision over Jose Uzcategui, who was knocked down twice.

Dirrell, from Flint, Michigan, was twice previously the WBC super middleweight champion. He first gained the title in 2014 after defeating Sakio Bika in a unanimous decision. He lost it a year later, but regained the title by technical decision over Avni Yildirim in 2019. Dirrell lost the title again in his next fight by knockout ninth-round knockout to David Benavidez.

This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: Caleb Plant wins with one-punch knockout in boxing return after Alvarez loss