In this week’s mailbag, we tackle your thoughts on where Caleb Plant stands following his surprise loss to Armando Resendiz; whether a potential fight between Teofimo Lopez and Devin Haney will be another snoozer; if Manny Pacquiao deserves some ire for skipping ahead of others for a title shot against Mario Barrios; and wondering why Bakhram Murtazaliev has yet to return.

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I'm always the sap who wants to give most boxers in their 30s the benefit of the doubt: Surely they have a reserve tank or two left to pull them through. 

But I didn't see that with Caleb Plant. His left hooks – his one effective punch – don’t seem to sting anymore, and he was reluctant to do anything but try to make Armando Resendiz reset, which Plant kept failing to do. 

You’d always get some sort of entertainment with Plant, for better or worse, but the dude took three clear beatings in his last five fights. Four, if you call what Resendiz did to him a “beating.” Time to consider the Retirement Tour. 

 -Joseph

Lucas Ketelle’s response: Plant looked off. The question now is simple: Was it an off-night, or is it a trend for things to come? 

Plant, as you pointed out, has had a lot of hard fights in a row. The big takeaway was not his gas tank, but rather how competitive the bout was. Plant’s punches weren’t as sharp as in the past, and teasing a Jermall Charlo fight in the future could have been a mistake in hindsight, as weird things happen when you double-book fights. 

Plant’s rise to fame has been a sight to see, as he was the underdog who made it to the top with ability and charisma. Now the questions become: How long can he stay there, and what is next? 

I am not sure I would say retirement is next, as he didn’t look shot, but some of his greatest attributes come from things that don’t age well, like reflexes and timing. Plant now is forced to do what many great fighters have done in the past: reinvent himself to stay relevant after a loss to Resendiz. More questions than answers remain about his future. 

TEOFIMO LOPEZ-DEVIN HANEY WILL BE ANOTHER BORING BOUT

Teofimo Lopez-Devin Haney will be another “very tactical’ fight – meaning Zzzzz. Haney was scared of Jose Ramirez’s power and ran all night, so just imagine how cautious he will be against Lopez, who will just sit back and wait for Haney to make a mistake.

-steeve steel

Tris Dixon’s response: This was similar to my initial thought. It’s either brave or foolish matchmaking, and we will only know after the event. But either way, it’s a stylistic gamble in light of the trio of horrific fights we endured in May. 

I swapped some messages about it with Chris Algieri, and when I asked whether it made for a dull fight, he said: “Maybe, maybe not.” 

You’d think that Haney, for all his skills, is running a risk of making himself incredibly difficult to match and watch, and he doesn’t come cheap. But they are two massive names, and that is what sells first and foremost.

WISHING ILL ON PACQUIAO FOR HIS UNDESERVED OPPORTUNITY

The hate shouldn’t be for Mario Barrios, but for Manny Pacquiao (“Mario Barrios up for the hate of playing Manny Pacquiao spoiler”). He’s using his name and past accomplishments to manipulate his way into an undeserved opportunity. He’s cut the line to get a title shot despite years of inactivity and going 8-5 in his last 13 fights. He should’ve stayed retired and, since he didn’t, I won’t feel bad if he gets what he asked for – which is a potential life-altering beating. 

-Jab jab boom

Jason Langendorf’s response: I get the sentiment, but “hate” is too strong a word for either fighter in this context. Barrios is doing his job, fighting the next guy in front of him and using Team Pacquiao’s eagerness as a once-in-a-lifetime marketing opportunity to turbocharge his personal brand. 

Meanwhile, Pacquiao is a Hall of Fame fighter who has definitely seen better days but arguably has yet to fully prove that he’s shot. I don’t like his chances, even given Barrios’ style, but we’ve seen other mid-40s greats do amazing things in the ring from time to time. 

Even if you aren’t on board with Pacquiao cutting the line in front of more deserving contenders, any hate should be reserved for the commissions, sanctioning bodies and the boxing powers that be – the folks looking the other way, or actively facilitating, to make Barrios-Pacquiao happen.

WHERE IS BAKHRAM MURTAZALIEV?

So where is Bakhram Murtazaliev in all the potential doings at 154? I get why Tim Tszyu garners the attention and press, but Murtazaliev destroyed Tszyu, retained his title in the process, and established himself as the legit boogeyman of the division, in my opinion. 

As a fan, Murtazaliev is the guy I really want to see, not Tszyu (sorry, Tim, it’s nothing personal). Is it bad management? Not enough of a fan base? Yeah, Fundora-Tszyu II will be one to watch, but let’s have the winner unify vs. Murtazaliev. 

-Left Hook Louie

Owen Lewis’ and David Greisman’s response: Where is Bakhram Murtazaliev indeed! In an ideal world, his destruction of Tszyu would have led to an automatic unification opportunity or mega-fight. Because this is boxing, we haven’t heard from him since. He did take some time off to heal a hand injury but returned to the gym four months ago – and there is still no news.

Part of this may be because of the usual culprits: politics and business. Murtazaliev is with Main Events, which does not have a network or streaming deal. On the one hand, that could allow Main Events to have more options available; Murtazaliev fought Tszyu on a PBC show on Amazon’s Prime Video. On the other hand, the promoters who do have output deals may want to protect their valuable commodities – Murtazaliev is arguably the blend of highest risk and lowest reward at 154lbs. 

Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions did an interview a little while ago in which he was asked if Vergil Ortiz would fight Murtazaliev. De La Hoya said that he wanted Ortiz to take an easier fight since he’d just had two very difficult ones against Serhii Bohachuk and Israil Madrimov, which is frankly fair enough. 

The two of us would prefer to see Ortiz-Murtazaliev rather than Murtazaliev against the Tszyu-Fundora II winner. Do we really want to see Tszyu back in the ring with the man who brutalized him? And maybe Jaron “Boots” Ennis would step to Murtazaliev if and when he climbs to 154lbs. That would be a fine way to make his name in a new weight class. Regardless of who it is, though, hopefully we see Murtazaliev back in the ring soon.

Want to be featured in the mailbag? Comment or ask a question in the comments section below. Submissions may be edited for length and clarity. We also may select readers’ comments from other BoxingScene stories.