Caleb Plant kept his vow to bring home a world championship to honor the memory of his late daughter. Now he wants to bring something else to Nashville.

The International Boxing Federation super middleweight champion, who won the 168-pound title two weekends ago with a unanimous decision over Jose Uzcategui, wants to defend that belt in the Music City.

"The next thing we want to do is hopefully bring something to Nashville," said Plant, who grew up in Ashland City. "Nothing is set in stone and we're still working things out, but if everything works out like I planned then I plan on defending the title in Nashville."

Plant, who improved to 18-0, came out of the fight bloodied from a cut over his right eye, his face puffy from the blows Uzcategui was able to land. The cut will have to heal before he can defend the title, so he figures to fight in August or September at the earliest.

Peter Quillin (34-1) and Caleb Truax (30-4) will fight in April in Minneapolis for the IBF's No. 1 ranking. The winner will get a mandatory title shot at Plant.

"I can turn right back around after winning the title and go right ahead and fight my mandatory," Plant said. "We may do something like that. There's a lot of big names out there, but that's one possibility."

Plant's daughter, Alia, was born with a brain disorder and suffered from multiple daily seizures. He had to make the decision to pull the plug on her life support four years ago when she was 19 months old. His promise to win a title was fulfilled when a referee raised his hand in a Los Angeles ring as the decision was announced.

"It was overwhelming," he said. "Everything that's gone on in the ring, out of the ring, it led to that moment. Everything I worked for, I've been climbing this mountain for 17 years and I've reached my first milestone."

Plant outboxed Uzcategui — a feared puncher who came in with a 28-2 record — for most of the bout. But he also stood his ground and fought, twice knocking down the Venezuelan-born fighter.

"If everyone is expecting him to box and stick and move, they're going to be in for a surprise," said Plant's trainer, Justin Gamber, before the bout. "He's going to mix it up and do some fighting at times."

Plant's first test in the fight came when he was cut in the fourth round. A few seconds later, Plant lashed out with a left hook and scored his second knockdown.

"Champions can work through anything," he said. "Champions don't make excuses. I'm already cut and there's nothing I can do about it, so the only thing to do is stay focused and continue to do what I was doing and get the job done."

After being dominated through the first seven rounds, Uzcategui pressed the issue and rallied in the eighth and ninth.

"He threw a jab and a right hand and he caught me," Plant said. "I didn't feel wobbly. He caught me with a hook toward the inside and then another one. I tried to tie up and I couldn't find my footing. I was falling around a little bit.

"As soon as I came out of it, I started bouncing and hit my gloves together to let him know that I wasn't hurt."

Plant regained control in the final three rounds to finish out the victory. He won the belt. Now he wants more.

"It's never been my goal to just win a world title," he said. "It's never been my goal to just get here. My goals, my dreams, my aspirations are bigger than just one world title.

"I'm clearly not scared to fight anybody, anywhere at any time. I fought the boogeyman in my division coming off a year-long layoff after hand surgery, no tuneup, and said, 'I'll take him.' I still want to give you guys big fights, exciting fights, and there's more titles to win."

Reach Tommy Deas at 615-259-8328 and on Twitter @tommydeas.

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FIGHTING FOR ALIA: Caleb Plant fights for title and his daughter's memory

WINNING THE BELT: Nashville's Caleb Plant wins world boxing title to honor daughter's memory