Caleb Plant is a former super middleweight boxing world champion. He became the IBF super middleweight champ in 2019 against Jose Uzcategui. The bout went the full distance, but Plant won the contest via a unanimous decision. He went on to defend the title three times against Caleb Truax, Vincent Feigenbutz, and Mike Lee. But his unbeaten 21-fight run came to an end against Canelo Alvarez in November 2021.
Although the Mexican fighter knocked Caleb out, the bout was closely contested up until then. But Plant did not let the loss derail his career and bounced back with a 9th-round KO win over Anthony Dirrell. It does not matter whether he wins or loses, Plant never ceases to entertain the fans on the mic. But despite his brash personality, Caleb has had a very tragic life story.
Caleb Plant lost his daughter Alia in 2015
Nicknamed “Sweethands,” Caleb was born on July 8, 1992, to Richie Plant and Beth Plant. In 2019, Caleb married a Fox News reporter, Jordan Hardy. Prior to that, Caleb was with Carman Briscoe and they had a daughter by the name of Alia Plant in 2013. But the 20-month-old Alia died after a hard battle with a pre-existing condition that she was born with.
Caleb detailed Alia’s struggles during 2019 with Yahoo Sports’ Kevin Iole. According to Plant, the doctors discovered a brain abnormality immediately after her birth. It resulted in her having many seizures a day and made her life very difficult. The report adds that she used to suffer upwards of a hundred seizures every day. In 2015, she was put in a medically induced coma and the doctors revealed that she was not going to be alive for much longer.
But, as a father, Caleb could not let his daughter go. He added, “Obviously, that’s something no parent ever wants to hear. I couldn’t accept it. I didn’t believe it. I told them, ‘No. We’ve got to figure something out. That’s my daughter. I don’t accept that.’ I was probably naive, or blind to what was going on, but I couldn’t accept it. I refused to accept it. I just didn’t think it would happen.”
Ultimately the doctors made it known to Caleb Plant that Alia was about to pass away, unfortunately. Hence Caleb decided to keep her on life support for a bit longer so every family member to had a chance to say goodbye. Caleb spoke to his daughter and let her know that she was a fighter and that it was okay to rest after battling throughout her entire life span.
Caleb Plant’s mother was shot dead in 2019
Losing his daughter was not the only tragedy in Plant’s life. Almost 4 years after his infant daughter Alia’s death, Caleb lost his mother Beth Plant in 2019. According to a report from The Tennessean, Beth was being transported to a hospital after placing a 911 call for help. But, as she was on her way to the hospital, the ambulance driver pulled over at New Hope Road and Highway 41A. The driver asked law enforcement for help.
When the officer arrived at the scene, 51-year-old Beth allegedly threatened the deputy with a knife. It made the deputy fire their weapon in self-defense. Beth Plant later died of her wounds at a hospital and Plant’s team later confirmed that it was indeed his mother, who died during the shooting.
He later paid tribute to his mother in a tweet and wrote, “Love you forever and always momma . You always said “work hard bubba” and I did. All you needed was help with your demons… your free now momma.”
Caleb Plant’s life has been riddled with tragedies. However, instead of folding over and giving up, Plant used the pain as motivation and turned himself into a world title-winning boxer.
