BOXING NEWS: Trout in Heavy Training for June 2 Title Defense

WBA World Junior Middleweight Champion Austin “No Doubt” Trout (24-0, 14 KOs) sounds tired. And he should.

Trout is in heavy training for his third title defense, against free-swinging junior middleweight contender Delvin “EL Peligro” Rodriguez (26-5-3, 14 KOs), on Saturday, June 2, at the Home Depot Center in Carson, California.

The 12-round Trout vs. Rodriguez clash will be part of a scheduled Quadrupleheader live on SHOWTIME® that also includes former light heavyweight champion Antonio “Magic Man” Tarver (29-6, 20 KOs) taking on unbeaten power puncher Lateef “Power” Kayode (18-0, 14 KO’s); Ronald “Winky” Wright (51-5-1, 25 KO’s) vs. Peter “Kid Chocolate” Quillin (26-0, 20 KO’s); and Vusi “Marvelous” Malinga (20-3, 12 KO’s) going against undefeated Leo “Terremoto” Santa Cruz (19-0-1, 11 KO’s) for the vacant IBF Bantamweight World Championship.

The SHOWTIME CHAMPIONSHIP BOXING telecast will air live at 9 p.m. ET/PT (delayed on the West Coast) on SHOWTIME® with preliminary bouts airing live on SHOWTIME EXTREME® beginning at 8 p.m. ET/PT.

“Training is going good. I’m tired, so it’s doing its job,” said Trout. “I’m excited. I can’t wait for June 2 to come. I’m working so hard right now and it’s all going good. I’m more excited now than I’ve ever been. In fact, I’m trying to curb it back because it’s making my days go real slow.”

26-year-old Trout lives in Las Cruces, New Mexico, where he, long-time trainer Louie Burke, and strength and conditioning coach Siju Shabazz have been putting in the work. “I run in the morning and do sprints, about four miles. Then we go to the gym for sparring and skills and drills, do about 20 rounds. Then my strength coach takes over and we get into calisthenics and biometric workout after that. It’s rough.”

Trout says he respects Rodriguez, but says this fight will be a wonderful chance to showcase his skills.

“He’s a good fighter. I’m glad to be able to have a fight like this on this stage against an exciting guy like him, but honestly, I don’t feel like he’s on my level. It’ll be a good fight. He’s a warrior and he brings a hard fight for all 12 rounds, but I think I can get him out of there in the late rounds. It might be closer early, but I’ll pull away in the later rounds for sure.”

Trout says he’s still the same guy he always was since winning the title, but has taken on more of a public role in his hometown, going around to schools and talking about bullying and how to prevent it. In the past year, he has visited over 10 schools and talked to more than 4000 kids.

“I’m hoping to get the Kardashian sisters to be his guests of honor at the fight,” laughs the good-natured champion. “I saw Floyd had Justin Bieber in his corner. I want to be able to say ‘forget Bieber. I got the Kardshians!”

The event is presented by A.T. Entertainment, Golden Boy Promotions and Gary Shaw Productions and sponsored by Corona and AT&T with Trout vs. Rodriguez being presented in association with Greg Cohen Promotions and Joe DeGuardia’sStar Boxing and Malinga vs. Santa Cruz being presented in association with Branco Sports Productions.

Tickets for the June 2 event are on sale now for as low as $25, with VIP floor seats priced at $200. Other tickets in the 8,000-seat outdoor stadium at The Home Depot Center are available at $50 and $100. Fans can purchase tickets at AXS.com or by phone at 888-9-AXS-TIX (888-929-7849), as well as The Home Depot Center Box Office (open Monday through Friday, 10:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. PT). VIP Suites are available for purchase by calling 1-877-604-8777. For more information on group discounts or VIP packages, please call 1-877-234-8425.