Boxer Caleb Plant mimed digging a grave to celebrate a violent knockout in New York

• Caleb Plant scored a thumping knockout win on Saturday against Anthony Dirrell.
• The 30-year-old boxer was hoping to rebound following a defeat to Canelo Alvarez last year.

A red-hot super middleweight rivalry came to a head on Saturday at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York.

Caleb Plant and Anthony Dirrell jawed at one another during a hostile promotion ahead of their 168-pound boxing contest.

It was expected to be a 12-round affair, but Plant — who desperately wanted to rebound following an 11th-round knockout loss to Saul "Canelo" Alvarez — finished Dirrell in a manner so violent and spectacular it will surely be considered in any Knockout of the Year awards.

The brutal ending was likely one that had been rehearsed at length.

At a media workout in Las Vegas last month, Insider observed Plant's coach Stephen "Breadman" Edwards imploring his fighter to "sit down" on his punches. That is, to ensure one's weight is firmly on the balls of one's feet when punching, to maximize power. They were clearly working on power through the camp.

In the ninth round of his fight with Dirrell this weekend, Plant put that advice into practice as he attacked the side of his opponent's body with a left, before transitioning quickly into a hook shot that caught Dirrell so clean, it flattened him in an instant.

There was no getting up from that. It was all over — Plant had won.

Watch the knockout right here:

Plant appeared to dig Dirrell an imaginary grave to celebrate his win

To add insult to injury, Plant appeared to mimic the digging of a grave by shoveling the imaginary dirt on top of his concussed opponent.

The celebration was a probable response to Dirrell's fashion attire earlier in the week when he wore a white shirt with "Plant flowers" written on it, above a cartoon photograph of the fighter's decapitated head in the dirt.

Referee Harvey Dock rushed over to Plant when he saw what was going on, and shoved the 30-year-old away from Dirrell's body in an apparent attempt to get him to stop.

See the celebration here:

The knockout, and celebration, weren't the only wild moments from the night

But the wild antics did not stop there.

"I'm sure all of you heard how [Dirrell] hates me," said Plant in his post-fight interview.

He then recalled some of the things Dirrell said in the build-up to getting knocked out in the ninth round.

"He said he will never let a white boy beat him," Plant said. "Let me tell you something – skin doesn't win fights, skills win fights."

Plant also said "this win felt good," adding: "My head and my heart is what won me this fight. I was in control the whole time. My coach told me to stay patient and ease in and that's what we did. Then, boom!"

Victory advanced Plant's pro boxing record to 22 wins (13 knockouts) against one defeat.

It is unclear what is next for the boxer, but big fights against Premier Boxing Champions stablemates David Benavidez or Jermall Charlo remain viable options.

The fighter seems determined to do what is necessary to secure the contest he wants the most — a rematch against Alvarez.