Canelo: They Say No, We Don't Wanna Have Face-To-Face; And I Say, 'Why Not?'

LAS VEGAS – Neither Canelo Alvarez nor Caleb Plant could understand Wednesday why they were not allowed to come face-to-face before, during or after their final press conference at MGM Grand.

There was a rather logical explanation, of course. Organizers of the Showtime Pay-Per-View event they’ll headline Saturday night were understandably concerned that these two super middleweight champions so strongly dislike one another that there would be another physical altercation on stage just three days before their fight at MGM Grand Garden Arena.

Alvarez still seemed surprised that he and Plant were escorted in different directions once Showtime’s moderator, Brian Campbell, signaled that the press conference ended.

“They say no, there’s not gonna be, we don’t wanna have face-to-face,” Alvarez told a group of reporters shortly afterward. “And I say, ‘Why not?’ ”

Alvarez infamously shoved Plant across a stage outside of the Beverly Hilton on September 21, which sparked a wild brawl that could’ve caused their 12-round, 168-pound title unification fight to be postponed. Plant responded to Alvarez’s two-handed shove by taking an open-handed swipe at Alvarez, who fired back with a two-punch combination that landed.

Alvarez’s left punch pushed Plant’s sunglasses into his face, which caused a significant scrape on Plant’s right cheek, beneath his eye. Plant visited a physician following their skirmish in Beverly Hills, California, but the unbeaten IBF champion said that the scrape didn’t cause him to miss a single day of sparring.

Nevertheless, organizers of their fight exercised caution Wednesday. Alvarez (56-1-2, 38 KOs) and Plant (21-0, 12 KOs) also are expected to be kept at a safe distance during their weigh-in Friday at MGM Grand Garden Arena, which is open to the public (1 p.m. PDT; doors open for fans at 11 a.m.).

Alvarez and Plant still hope they come face to face Friday.

“They didn’t want us to do a face-to-face,” Plant said after the press conference. “So, that was their call, not mine. I mean, I like a face-to-face, so it don’t matter to me.”

Alvarez, 31, and Plant, 29, will fight for Alvarez’s WBA, WBC and WBO super middleweight titles and Plant’s IBF belt. Caesars Sportsbook lists Alvarez, of Guadalajara, Mexico, as a 9-1 favorite to beat Plant, of Ashland City, Tennessee, in the bout that’ll headline a four-fight Showtime Pay-Per-View event that’ll start at 9 p.m. EDT and 6 p.m. PDT ($79.99).

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.