Austin Trout is taking off the gloves.
The former WBA light middleweight champion is making a move to the bare knuckle world after he signed a multi-fight deal with BKFC. Trout, who held a WBA title from 2011 to 2013, before losing it to Canelo Alvarez, is not abandoning the sweet science entirely, he said. Instead, he’s adding the bare knuckle boxing to his combat sports repertoire.
“I still have plans to get another world title in boxing, but man, when they said, ‘Would you ever do bare knuckle?,’ I watched it, I’m a fan,” Trout told MMA Junkie Radio. “I’ve been watching it. I’m already a fan, so I was like, ‘Man, I can whoop him and him,’ I’m already looking at the landscape.
“So when they asked me, ‘Would you do it?,’ Would I? That takes me back to my roots. I’m from New Mexico. That’s a desert out there, and fighting is one of the things we do out there a lot. So bareknuckle is taking me back to my New Mexican roots.”
As far as his aspirations now in a new sport, Trout has all the intention to reach the highest of heights. The 37-year-old wants to become champion in multiple weight classes and defend the belts. Trout is already taking an aim at BKFC two-division champion Luis Palomino.
“He’s the best in that organization, so that’s who I’m coming for,” Trout said. “Let me get my feet wet, Luis. He’s had a good run, but he ain’t fighting nobody like me nor would he until I step in there, so yeah, that’s the one.”
