Former junior middleweight titleholder Austin Trout is best known for a career-defining win against Miguel Cotto in 2012, and for giving Saul “Canelo” Alvarez all he could handle in a competitive fight in 2013.

“No Doubt” Trout (37-5-1, 18 KOs), now 39, is competing in the Conor McGregor-backed Bare Knuckle Fighting Championship, and he’ll be fighting for the third time in BKFC on Saturday, defending his 165-pound crown against Rico Franco on Saturday in Marbella, Spain, on DAZN.

Trout still fondly remembers his fight against Alvarez. 

“Giving Canelo a great fight and losing to him has done more to my career than not fighting him at all, as far as my name and respect goes in boxing,” Trout told BoxingScene. “It's elevated me in ways that beating some other fighters wouldn't have.”

Trout has fallen short in big fights since facing Alvarez, dropping decisions to the likes of Erislandy Lara, both Charlo twins, and Jarrett Hurd in title fights.

“Canelo’s career has gone so well. I'm happy the Edgar Berlanga fight numbers did well for him,” said Trout. 

“Give the king some respect. He can do whatever he wants now. As a fan, I would love to see the David Benavidez fight. That's the fight to make. And I am sure he will do it. When has he not fought the guy people have wanted him to fight?

“I was so sure before that Benavidez was the one [to beat Alvarez], but after his last fight against Oleksandr Gvozdyk, I don't know now. Maybe he should do another fight at 175 pounds to get in there and have a good showing so we can hype it up again. I would favor Canelo at this point. Everyone has a bad night, though.

“Canelo has looked better and better since the Dmitry Bivol fight. But I think Bivol will have his number in the rematch. Bivol outboxed and outsmarted him in the first fight. The Terence Crawford fight for Canelo is a bigger 50-50 fight than Benavidez. Crawford is strong, smart and tricky. He got some balls, bro. It's such a lose-lose fight for Canelo. That's not a smart fight to take. You win, you lose. You lose, you really lose.”

As Trout awaits for more boxing opportunities, he’s all in on his burgeoning bare knuckle fighting career.

“My hands are growing permanent calluses. I plan to eventually have thick knuckles like Bruce Lee, some real thick joints,” said Trout. “I've broken both hands before, but they have never given me problems. The breaks were never around the knuckles. My hands have held up throughout my whole career.” 

Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and broadcast reporter whose work has appeared on ESPN, Fox Sports, USA Today, The Guardian, Newsweek, Men’s Health, NFL.com, Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Ring Magazine and more. He has been writing for BoxingScene since 2018. Manouk is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on , , and , through email at manouk[dot]akopyan[at]gmail.com or via .