A Closer Look at Jordan Plant, One-Half of Boxing’s ‘Power Couple’

Published

5 months ago

September 2, 2024

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Caleb Plant returns to the ring on Sept. 14 at the T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. Plant, a former 168-pound world title-holder whose only two losses came against the top dogs in the division – Canelo Alvarez and David Benavidez – hopes to get back in the title hunt at the expense of undefeated (28-0, 21 KOs) Trevor McCumby. Plant vs. McCumby will air on Amazon Prime Video PPV with Alvarez defending his WBC and WBO straps against Edgar Berlanga in the featured bout.

From the opening bell, Plant vs. McCumby will grip the undivided attention of the former Jordan Hardy who now goes by Jordan Plant. She and Caleb will celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary on Oct. 5.

Boxing fans know Jordan Plant as the roving reporter on PBC telecasts. She also hosts shoulder programming for PBC events and has a conspicuous role in pre-fight confabs for the media. However, although she will definitely be there on Sept. 14, you won’t see her – at least not with a microphone in her hand — if you happen to tune in as she doesn’t work cards on which her husband appears.

The boxing literature is almost totally bereft of non-fiction stories where the central character is not the boxer but, rather, the special woman in his life. A rare exception is a 1949 story by the great W.C. Heinz for Cosmopolitan that would find its way into several anthologies.

Heinz shadowed the wife of Rocky Graziano on the night that Rocky fought Charley Fusari at New York’s Polo Grounds.

Mrs. Graziano, the former Norma Unger, attended her husband’s fights as he was climbing the ladder, but quickly lost her stomach for it and would wait for him outside the club. When Rocky fought Bummy Davis in a ballyhooed match at the Garden, she went to the movies.

On the night that Heinz was there, she coped with her nervousness by chain-smoking more than usual as she ironed some laundry and then by taking a walk outside, leaving the house with her mother and a friend as the bout was about to start. But she couldn’t escape the fight entirely because it was on the radio and as she walked around her New York neighborhood, a neighborhood of multi-family homes, the muffled sounds of it floated down from open windows. It seems as if everyone in the neighborhood knew her. “Rocky is winning,” some called out to her to allay her fears. (For the record, Graziano was trailing on all three cards when he knocked out Fusari in the 10^th and final round.)

Looking back at the Heinz piece through the prism of history, one is struck by how little we learn about Mrs. Rocky Graziano. She was then 23 years old, had been married six years, and she and Rocky shared two young daughters, ages five and two. Beyond that she was simply a housewife, a woman seemingly without an identity apart from her husband.

Jordan Plant is a different cat in a different era. Born on July 19, 1992, she grew up in the Sacramento suburb of Roseville, California. One of four sisters, all of whom played sports (her sister Hannah was a heptathlete at Samford University in Alabama), Jordan starred on the women’s track team at her high school, earning a full ride to UNLV after a year at a NorCal junior college. Her specialty was the hurdles and her position coach at UNLV was Larry Wade. A world class hurdler on the international stage during his days as a competitor, Wade would become an in-demand strength and conditioning coach within the boxing community. He’s worked with Jordan’s husband (small world), but hasn’t been around for this camp, having accepted an offer from Jake Paul to work with him exclusively.

At UNLV, Jordan majored in broadcast journalism. She credits Sage Steele, the former host of ESPN’s flagship SportsCenter, for nudging her on to this career path.

“When I first saw Sage Steele on TV, there was a lot less diversity in sports broadcasting,” notes Jordan. “Here was a woman who looked a little like me, a woman I could identify with. I thought to myself, hmmm, perhaps there’s room for me in this industry too. And what’s interesting is that we have become good friends; we keep in touch. We have a lot in common.” (Indeed. Sage Steele’s father Gary Steele, who held the rank of colonel when he retired after 23 years in the Army, was an outstanding tight end at West Point. Jordan Plant’s father Eugene Hardy, who is retired from the Sacramento County Sheriff’s Office where he was a detective assigned to the gang unit, was a cornerback and kick returner at the University of Arizona.)

One day when she was at UNLV, a professor told her that there was this upstart company, Premier Boxing Champions, that had an opening for an intern. Jordan auditioned and was hired. In May of 2015, she was bumped up to a full-fledged employee. When she married Caleb Plant, she transitioned away from Jordan Hardy. Asked why she didn’t choose to keep her maiden name, she replied, “Perhaps if I had been more established, I would have kept it, but I was cool with becoming Jordan Plant. I’m proud to say he’s my husband.”

Perhaps one reason that so little has been written about boxers’ wives is that many don’t stick around. Jake LaMotta was married seven times, one more than Willie Pep. (Referencing the first five, Pep said, “they were all good housekeepers; when they divorced me, they kept the house.”)

Jordan Plant has a theory about the turnover. “A boxer is a modern-day gladiator,” she says. “To be a good boxing wife, you have to understand that a fighter has to be selfish. When it’s fight week, I let Caleb focus on boxing, I don’t even let him take out the trash. I am not going to be a distraction.”

That may be so, but one would be hard-pressed to name a boxer’s wife who is more immersed in her husband’s career. Jordan coordinates things when Caleb is in camp. Among other things, she makes sure his sparring partners arrive to the gym on time and get paid. “I have scored some of his sparring rounds,” she says. “Caleb appreciates the feedback.”

Besides being a TV personality and a housewife, Jordan has found time to compete in two powerlifting events and in October will launch her clothing line, JP Athletics. She’s also a mother, “a full-time mom” she emphasizes. She and Caleb welcomed a daughter into their life in August of 2022. Her name is Charly.

What if Charly showed an interest in becoming a boxer? Would her parents be okay with it? “We have talked about that,” says Jordan. “Because she’s growing up around the sport, it wouldn’t be surprising if she took it up. It’s a hard way to make a living so we certainly wouldn’t encourage it, but we would have her back if she persisted.”

When Caleb is in the heat of battle, Jordan sends him good vibes by way of mental telepathy. And when he takes a hard punch, does she feel it too?

When we broached this question to her, she didn’t think it was stupid at all and, if Norma Graziano were around today, she would have likely reacted the same way. There’s a kinship there, no matter how different their day-to-day lives.

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Arne K. Lang

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Skylar Lacy Blocked for Lamar Jackson before Making his Mark in Boxing

Published

2 days ago

January 19, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Skylar Lacy, a six-foot-seven heavyweight, returns to the ring on Sunday, Feb. 2, opposing Brandon Moore on a card in Flint, Michigan, airing worldwide on DAZN.

As this is being written, the bookmakers hadn’t yet posted a line on the bout, but one couldn’t be accused of false coloring by calling the 10-round contest a 50/50 fight. And if his frustrating history is any guide, Lacy will have another draw appended to his record or come out on the wrong side of a split decision.

This should not be construed as a tip to wager on Moore. “Close fights just don’t seem to go my way,” says the boxer who played alongside future multi-year NFL MVP Lamar Jackson at the University of Louisville.

A 2021 National Golden Gloves champion, Skylar Lacy came up short in his final amateur bout, losing a split decision to future U.S. Olympian Joshua Edwards. His last Team Combat League assignment resulted in another loss by split decision and he was held to a draw in both instances when stepping up in class as a pro. “In my mind, I’m still undefeated,” says Lacy (8-0-2, 6 KOs). “No one has ever kicked my ass.”

Lacy was the B-side in both of those draws, the first coming in a 6-rounder against Top Rank fighter Antonio Mireles on a Top Rank show in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, and the second in an 8-rounder against George Arias, a Lou DiBella fighter on a DiBella-promoted card in Philadelphia.

Lacy had the Mireles fight in hand when he faded in the homestretch. The altitude was a factor. Lake Tahoe, Nevada (officially Stateline) sits 6,225 feet above sea level. The fight with Arias took an opposite tack. Lacy came on strong after a slow start to stave off defeat.

Skylar will be the B-side once again in Michigan. The card’s promoter, former world title challenger Dmitriy Salita, inked Brandon Moore (16-1, 10 KOs) in January. “A capable American heavyweight with charisma, athleticism and skills is rare in today’s day and age. Brandon has got all these ingredients…”, said Salita in the press release announcing the signing. (Salita has an option on Skylar Lacy’s next pro fight in the event that Skylar should win, but the promoter has a larger investment in Moore who was previously signed to Top Rank, a multi-fight deal that evaporated after only one fight.)

Both Lacy and Moore excelled in other sports. The six-foot-six Moore was an outstanding basketball player in high school in Fort Lauderdale and at the NAIA level in college. Lacy was an all-state football lineman in Indiana before going on to the University of Louisville where he started as an offensive guard as a redshirt sophomore, blocking for freshman phenom Lamar Jackson. “Lamar was hard-working and humble,” says Lacy about the player who is now one of the world’s highest-paid professional athletes.

When Lacy committed to Louisville, the head coach was Charlie Strong who went on to become the head coach at the University of Texas. Lacy was never comfortable with Strong’s successor Bobby Petrino and transferred to San Jose State. Having earned his degree in only three years (a BA in communications) he was eligible immediately but never played a down because of injuries.

Returning to Indianapolis where he was raised by his truck dispatcher father, a single parent, Lacy gravitated to Pat McPherson’s IBG (Indy Boxing and Grappling) Gym on the city’s east side where he was the rare college graduate pounding the bags alongside at-risk kids from the city’s poorer neighborhoods.

Lacy built a 12-6 record across his two seasons in Team Combat League while representing the Las Vegas Hustle (2023) and the Boston Butchers (2024).

For the uninitiated, a Team Combat League (TCL) event typically consists of 24 fights, each consisting of one three-minute round. The concept finds no favor with traditionalists, but Lacy is a fan. It’s an incentive for professional boxers to keep in shape between bouts without disturbing their professional record and, notes Lacy, it’s useful in exposing a competitor to different styles.

“It paid the bills and kept me from just sitting around the house,” says Lacy whose 12-6 record was forged against 13 different opponents.

As a sparring partner, Lacy has shared the ring with some of the top heavyweights of his generation, e.g., Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. He was one of Fury’s regular sparring partners during the Gypsy King’s trilogy with Deontay Wilder. He worked with Joshua at Derrick James’ gym in Dallas and at Ben Davison’s gym in England, helping Joshua prepare for his date in Saudi Arabia with Francis Ngannou and had previously sparred with Ngannou at the UFC Performance Center in Las Vegas. Skylar names traveling to new places as one of his hobbies and he got to scratch that itch when he joined Whyte’s camp in Portugal.

As to the hardest puncher he ever faced, he has no hesitation: “Ngannou,” he says. “I negotiated a nice price to spend a week in his camp and the first time he hit me I knew I should have asked for more.”

Lacy is confident that having shared the ring with some of the sport’s elite heavyweights will get him over the hump in what will be his first 10-rounder (Brandon Moore has never had to fight beyond eight rounds, having won his three 10-rounders inside the distance). Lacy vs. Moore is the co-feature to Claressa Shields’ homecoming fight with Danielle Perkins. Shields, basking in the favorable reviews accorded the big-screen biopic based on her first Olympic journey (“The Fire Inside”) will attempt to capture a title in yet another weight class at the expense of the 42-year-old Perkins, a former professional basketball player.

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Mizuki Hiruta Dominates in her U.S. Debut and Omar Trinidad Wins Too at Commerce

Published

4 days ago

January 18, 2025

David A. Avila

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Japan’s Mizuki Hiruta smashed through Mexico’s Maribel Ramirez with ease in winning by technical decision and local hero Omar Trinidad continued his assault on the featherweight division on Friday.

Hiruta (7-0, 2 KOs), who prefers to be called “Mimi,” made her American debut with an impressive performance against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez (15-11-4) and retained the WBO super flyweight world title by unanimous decision at Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

The pink-haired Japanese southpaw champion quickly proved to be quicker, stronger and even better than advertised. In the opening round Ramirez landed on the floor twice after throwing errant blows. On one instance, it could have been ruled a knockdown but it was not a convincing blow.

In the second round, Ramirez again attacked and again was met with a Hiruta check right hook and down went the Mexican. This time referee Ray Corona gave the eight-count and the fight resumed.

It was Hiruta’s third title defense but this time it was on American soil. She seemed nervous by the prospect of getting a favorable review from the more than 700 fans inside the casino tent.

For more than a year Hiruta has been training off and on with Manny Robles in the L.A. area. Now that she has a visa, she has spent considerable time this year learning the tricks of the trade. They proved explosively effective.

Though Mexico City’s Ramirez has considerable experience against world champions, she discovered that Hiruta was not easy to hit. Often, the Japanese champion would slip and counter with precision.

It was an impressive American debut, though the fight was stopped in the eighth round after a collision of heads. The scores were tallied and all three saw Hiruta the winner by scores of 80-71 twice and 79-72.

“I’m so happy. I could have done much more,” said Hiruta through interpreter Yuriko Miyata. “I wanted to do more things that Manny Robles taught me.”

Trinidad Wins Too

Omar Trinidad (18-0-1, 13 KOs) discovered that challenger Mike Plania (31-5, 18 KOs) has a very good chin and staying power. But over 10 rounds Trinidad proved to be too fast and too busy for the Filipino challenger.

Immediately it was evident that the East L.A. featherweight was too quick and too busy for Plania who preferred a counter-puncher attack that never worked.

“He was strong,” said Trinidad. “He took everything.”

After 10 redundant rounds all three judges scored for Trinidad 100-90 twice and 99-91. He retains the WBC Continental Americas title.

Other Bouts

Ali Akhmedov (23-1, 17 KOs) blasted out Malcolm Jones (17-5-1) in less than two rounds. A dozen punches by Akhmedov forced referee Thomas Taylor to stop the super middleweight fight.

Iyana “Roxy” Verduzco (3-0) bloodied Lindsey Ellis in the first round and continued the speedy assault in the next two rounds. Referee Ray Corona saw enough and stopped the fight in favor of Verduzco at 1:34 of the third round.

Gloria Munguilla (7-1) and Brook Sibrian (5-2) lit up the boxing ring with a nonstop clash for eight rounds in their light flyweight fight. Munguilla proved effective with a slip-and-counter attack. Sibrian adjusted and made the fight closer in the last four rounds but all three judges favored Munguilla.

More Winners

Joshua Anton, Tayden Beltran, Adan Palma, and Alexander Gueche all won their bouts.

Photos credit: Al Applerose

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Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Published

6 days ago

January 16, 2025

David A. Avila

Avila Perspective, Chap. 309: 360 Promotions Opens with Trinidad, Mizuki and More

Best wishes to the survivors of the Los Angeles wildfires that took place last week and are still ongoing in small locales.

Most of the heavy damage took place in the western part of L.A. near the ocean due to Santa Ana winds. Another very hot spot was in Altadena just north of the Rose Bowl. It was a horrific tragedy.

Hopefully the worst is over.

Pro boxing returns with 360 Boxing Promotions spotlighting East L.A.’s Omar Trinidad (17-0-1, 13 KOs) defending a regional featherweight title against Mike Plania (31-4, 18 KOs) on Friday, Jan. 17, at the Commerce Casino in Commerce, Calif.

“I’m the king of L.A. boxing and I’ll be ready to put on a show headlining again in the main event. This is my year, I’m ready to challenge and defeat any of the featherweight world champions,” said Trinidad.

UFC Fight Pass will stream the Hollywood Night fight card that includes a female world championship fight and other intriguing match-ups.

Tom Loeffler heads 360 Promotions and once again comes full force with a hot prospect in Trinidad. If you’re not familiar with Loeffler’s history of success, he introduced America to Oleksandr Usyk, Gennady “GGG” Golovkin and the brothers Wladimir and Vitaly Kltischko.

“We’ve got a wealth of international talent and local favorites to kick off our 2025 in grand style,” said Loeffler.

He knows talent.

Trinidad hails from the Boyle Heights area of East L.A. near the Los Angeles riverbed. Several fighters from the past came from that exact area including the first Golden Boy, Art Aragon.

Aragon was a huge gate attraction during the late 1940s until 1960. He was known as a lady’s man and dated several Hollywood starlets in his time. Though he never won a world title he did fight world champions Carmen Basilio, Jimmy Carter and Lauro Salas. He was more or less the king of the Olympic Auditorium and Los Angeles boxing during his career.

Other famous boxers from the Boyle Heights area were notorious gangster Mickey Cohen and former world champion Joey Olivo.

Can Trinidad reach world title status?

Facing Trinidad will be Filipino fighter Plania who’s knocked off a couple of prospects during his career including Joshua “Don’t Blink” Greer and Giovanni Gutierrez. The fighter from General Santos in the Philippines can crack and hold his own in the boxing ring.

It’s a very strong fight card and includes WBO world titlist Mizuki Hiruta of Japan who defends the super flyweight title against Mexican veteran Maribel Ramirez. It’s a tough matchup for Hiruta who makes her American debut. You can’t miss her with that pink hair and she has all the physical tools to make a splash in this country.

Mizukii Hiruta

Two other female bouts are also planned, including light flyweight banger L.A.’s Gloria Munguilla (6-1) against Coachella’s Brook Sibrian (5-1) in a match set for six rounds. Both are talented fighters. Another female fight includes super featherweights Iyana “Right Hook Roxy” Verduzco (2-0) versus Lindsey Ellis (2-1) in another six-rounder. Ellis can crack with all her wins coming via knockout. Verduzco is a multi-national titlist as an amateur.

Others scheduled to perform are Ali Akhmedov, Joshua Anton, Adan Palma and more.

Doors open at 4:30 p.m.

Boxing and the Media

The sport of professional boxing is currently in flux. It’s always in flux but no matter what people may say or write, boxing will survive.

Whether you like Jake Paul or not, he proved boxing has worldwide appeal with monstrous success in his last show. He has media companies looking at the numbers and imagining what they can do with the sport.

Sure, UFC is negotiating a massive billion dollar deal with media companies, as is WWE, both are very similar in that they provide combat entertainment. You don’t need to know the champions because they really don’t matter. Its about the attractions.

Boxing is different. The good champions last and build a following that endures even beyond their careers a la Mike Tyson.

MMA can’t provide that longevity, but it does provide entertainment.

Currently, there is talk of establishing a boxing league again. It’s been done over and over but we shall see if it sticks this time.

Pro boxing is the true warrior’s path and that means a solo adventure. It’s a one-on-one sport and that appeals to people everywhere. It’s the oldest sport that can be traced to prehistoric times. You don’t need classes in Brazilian Jiujitsu, judo, kick boxing or wrestling. Just show up in a boxing gym and they can put you to work.

It’s a poor person’s path that can lead to better things and most importantly discipline.

Photos credit: Lina Baker

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