"No Doubt" in Trout

"No Doubt" in Trout

Mark E. Ortega

Leave-it-in-the-ring.com

June 9, 2011

If you asked even the most hardcore of boxing fan what important junior middleweight bout is happening in Mexico this weekend, the likely response would be “The Canelo fight is next weekend I thought?”

It's hard to blame any astute fight aficionado for getting it wrong; the WBA junior middleweight title tilt between the defending Austin “No Doubt” Trout [22-0, 13 KOs] of Albuquerque, New Mexico and hard-nosed David “The Destroyer” Lopez [40-12, 23 KOs] of Nogales, Sonora, Mexico has flown under the radar as it won't appear on American television until a week later, which coincides with the HBO broadcast of the WBC junior middleweight title fight between emerging Saul “Canelo” Alvarez and Brit Ryan Rhodes in an expected packed house in Jalisco, Mexico.

Contrasting the two 154 pound beltholders is interesting. Both turned professional at the end of 2005 yet Alvarez has been fast tracked to superstardom while Trout's career has taken a slower trajectory.

Alvarez, famous for his unusual red locks, caught on with the American audience in his HBO pay-per-view debut against Jose Miguel Cotto on the undercard of the megafight between Floyd Mayweather, Jr. and Shane Mosley. Alvarez was buzzed badly by a fighter who had campaigned four weight classes lower earlier in his career. Alvarez showed grit for a young kid only 19 years old at the time and began pounding away the remainder of the bout, ultimately earning a ninth-round stoppage.

Trout, for his part, didn't fight the entirety of 2010 before getting a big, risky opportunity against brother of “Canelo”, Rigoberto Alvarez, in February of this year for the vacant WBA belt. Trout, a more than two-to-one underdog, dominated Alvarez over twelve lopsided rounds, earning a bargaining chip that he hoped would begin to open more doors for the 25-year old from Las Cruces, New Mexico.

Prior to the title win, Trout was mainly notable as a sparring partner for current middleweight champion of the world Sergio Martinez, former welterweight champion Antonio Margarito, and junior welterweight contender Lucas Matthysse.

Alvarez got his title handed to him by most people's opinion, as this March he took on Ricky Hatton's brother Matthew, who had been campaigning exclusively as a welterweight and was not ranked as a junior middleweight. This bout was somehow made for the vacant WBC title at the Honda Center in Anaheim, which saw an influx of Mexican supporters who cheered on “Canelo” to a dominating win.

When asked in a phone interview a day before he took off for Mexico if he was frustrated by the way the way both he and Alvarez have been moved, Trout had a positive outlook.

“I just think it makes my career more meaningful than his,” explained Trout. “It makes me a better fighter as opposed to fighters who were handed things.”

[At this time in the interview, Trout “coughed” and sharply said, “Chavez Jr.!” and another cough.]

“I am going to definitely push forward to get to where I need and make my legacy: to be able to say I didn't have much help and did it on my own, God being the only help and all I need.”

One storyline that seemed like an obvious one that could be explored is the revenge factor of a Canelo-Trout unification fight.

“I think he is avoiding me,” concluded Trout. “He was talking that revenge stuff right after the fight but it was just emotions getting the best of him because it stopped that day. It's a good career move, I would expose him.”

Trout had fought opponents in their home state no less than eight times in his professional career prior to traveling to Mexico for the bout. As Glen Johnson winds down a long winded career that saw him travel the world and mostly find himself on the wrong side of a decision, Trout is starting to establish himself as a new kind of “Road Warrior”, one that wins, leaving no doubt when the fight goes to the cards.

“Even before the Rigoberto fight I was doing a lot of traveling, going to people's hometowns and all of that has been leading up to not this fight but future fights where I am not on the road.”

Lopez is a man who hasn't lost in six years and is finally getting an opportunity that has alluded him the entirety of his 16 year professional career, fighting for a world title. In back to back fights in 2004, Lopez knocked off two undefeateds in Lonnie Bradley and Jerson Ravelo, who were a combined 42-0-1 at the time. A twelfth round TKO loss to Fulgencio Zuniga a few bouts later to open 2005 is the last time Lopez has suffered defeat, though he hasn't exactly fought the “who's who” of the 154 pound weight class. That said, Lopez has said he is going to come right after Trout.

“That's what we expect from him, but gameplans change when they don't work and we will see how he feels against me when his fails,” exerted a confident Trout.

It's obviously important for Trout to win Saturday if he wants to try and open a window to get himself into the mix with the Miguel Cottos and Saul Alvarezes of the division. There is room to make himself a more attractive opponent to those names.

One fight that makes sense is a unification bout between Trout and IBF champion Cornelius “K9” Bundrage, who himself was a good-sized underdog to take the title from former lineal welterweight champion Cory Spinks, yet stopped him in five rounds. In boxing, the more belts you hold the more lucrative the money gets, usually. Two belts being on the line means it could sell to HBO or Showtime as a legitimate fight, maybe an opening telecast bout. That could get the winner exposure in order to get involved with the big names.

“I know Cornelius is hungry like I am and I think it would be a good fight,” offered Trout on the idea of fighting Bundrage. “One of my goals is to be the undefeated and undisputed world champion. I've challenged Alvarez [WBA beltholder] and Sergei Dzinziruk who holds the WBO belt I would like to take off his hands. Eventually it would have to go through Bundrage and I'm ready for that.”

When Timothy Bradley fought Kendall Holt in a junior welterweight unifier, on their own neither guy was incredibly sell-able as a big name opponent. When Bradley added the WBO title to his WBC, he became a bigger name despite him having to vacate the WBC version immediately after.

One guy who has actually called out Trout is lightly regarded former super middleweight beltholder Anthony Mundine from Australia.

“I've always wanted to travel to Australia. I would be the guy to come and beat him and take all the fans who hate him and make them my fans.”

When asked what his “in a perfect world” scenario would be, Trout sounded like a guy who had planned it all out since he was a kid.

“In a perfect world, get through David, he's a tough guy who has been avoided for a reason; beat Mundine, and if Alvarez beats Ryan Rhodes, take the belt from him and then fight Miguel Cotto.”

The best case scenario for Trout would be if Showtime could force a Super Six-esque tournament for the junior middleweights, but at this juncture Trout just has to leave no doubt in Mexico Saturday night to leave those possibilities open.