Saul ‘Canelo’ Alvarez has claimed a lengthy list of victims in the boxing ring but the world’s top pound-for-pound boxer has rarely had the type of test he had against the previously unbeaten American Caleb Plant on Saturday night.

The American fighter started the fight on the front foot and it was clear that Canelo was facing a stern threat to his array of world title belts — but as the Mexican standout has done on so many previous occasions, he slowly began to creep back into the fight as the rounds progressed and landed the fight’s most telling blow in the eleventh round when he collapsed Plant to the canvas with a shuddering shot.

The win enshrined Canelo as one of the sport’s greatest-ever fighters, and unified the super-middleweight division titles in the process — but Plant can certainly take some pride in the manner of his performance, and he has addressed the defeat on social media in the hours following the most disappointing night of his career.

I’ve bent most the world to my will and done it with nothing but passion and skill. I’ll be back 💪🏻 I showed I belong on the top level and I’ll be champion of the world again. I’ve never been scared to go big or go out on my shield. Thank you to all the fans and all my supporters pic.twitter.com/bga3PaCnkI

— CalebPlant (@SweetHandsPlant) November 8, 2021

“I’ve bent most the world to my will and done it with nothing but passion and skill,” he wrote. “I’ll be back. I showed I belong on the top level and I’ll be champion of the world again. I’ve never been scared to go big or go out on my shield. Thank you to all the fans and all my supporters.”

As he noted, he certainly will be back — and this was the type of fight which ticks the boxes for having a rematch a little further down the line, and don’t be surprised if that comes sooner rather than later.