Last night in Albuquerque, New Mexico, former WBA 154 pound champ Austin “No Doubt” Trout lived up to his ring nickname in his bareknuckle debut. Facing former UFC star Diego Sanchez in the headliner of a BKFC card, the 37 year old Trout proceeded to bust up the game but so easy to hit Sanchez, 41, pretty much at will.
Trout, his fast hands landing flush, on Sanchez’ head and body, opened up multiple cuts on the face of the older man, and by round two it was a one-sided affair. Trout dropped Sanchez in round four, this when he countered one of Sanchez’ wild swings. Moment later, the former UFC welterweight’s face a bloody mess, the doctor decided to do the right thing and stop the fight. Both men were making their bareknuckle debut.
Trout, who had said beforehand he would spare Sanchez from a beating to the head and would target his body so as he would “avoid head trauma” instead punched both up and down. So much the faster, more agile man, Trout looked pretty in there – this in a sport that has its fair share of critics, critics who would be hard pressed to use the word pretty when describing bareknuckle fighting.
Trout, adapting to the pace needed to be set in a two-minutes per round bout, ducked and rolled, making his man miss, while he also let loose with plenty of shots. Not seeming to worry about the possibility of hurting a hand, Trout landed check hooks, jabs, right hooks, pretty much everything. Sanchez, who was bleeding as early as round two, was game and he tried his best but he was badly outclassed and it is hoped he will now be able to find something else to do to earn a living.
As for Trout, who knows, he may engage in further bareknuckle fights. Trout had things all his own way last night, however, and he may find himself having way tougher nights if he does take more BKFC fights.
For now, though he didn’t manage to get the body shot KO he had predicted going in, Trout did absolutely everything he wanted to do last night.
Austin Trout vs Diego Sanchez This Friday LIVE On FITE TV
Former WBA light middleweight champ Austin Trout will have his bare-knuckle debut on Friday night in Albuquerque, New Mexico when he will face former UFC fighter Diego Sanchez.
The bout has been the subject of some scrutiny, or should I say the physical condition of Sanchez and his ability to go ahead with the fight has been under scrutiny, with the New Mexico Athletic Commission having to put it to the vote as far as whether or not Sanchez, who has taken substantial (see gruesome) punishment in his UFC fights, was fit to fight.
Only after Sanchez, 41, produced the necessary medical documentation that proved he is fit to fight, including here an MRI brain scan, did the Commission vote in his favor, 3-1, for the welterweight to go ahead with the fight. Trout, aged 37 and having been in the ring with a number of big names, including Miguel Cotto, Canelo Alvarez, and the two Charlos, Jermall and Jermell, has now said he will take Sanchez out with body shots so as to “save him the head trauma.”
In reality, pretty much anything could happen in Friday’s BKFC fight. Both men will be making their bareknuckle debut. Both guys are also talking a great fight going into a fight that may not prove to be too pleasant to watch. This one will not be for the purists, let’s put it that way.
“He passed all the medical exams so we have a fight,” Trout said in speaking with Just Scrap Radio. “God willing, we both walk away healthy and happy, maybe him not so happy but more so healthy. I’m going to knock his ass out. He is too tough for his own good. I’m going to body him, meaning I will go to his body and save him the head trauma.”
Sanchez, who went 30-14 in MMA, says he has no concerns about brain damage whatsoever:
“I have no CTE or any signs of brain damage, am I talking like Nick Diaz? No, I’m speaking better than I ever have,” Sanchez wrote on social media.
But as we know, or as the experts know, a clear speech pattern doesn’t necessarily mean a person is not damaged in the areas of the brain that are not used for the function of speech. Sanchez really has been in some brutal wars in the UFC, yet he says two-minute rounds, as are featured in bareknuckle, will suit him and his style of fighting perfectly.
And Sanchez says Trout is in for “a rude awakening.”
“He is so confident he thinks no MMA fighter can hang with him,” Sanchez said of Trout. “He thinks he’s Floyd Mayweather. You are Austin Trout, not the guy who beat by Canelo, you are the guy who got beat by Canelo. You are not what you think you are, and you are in for a rude awakening.”
Again, no fight fans know just what they’re in for with this one. Above all, let’s hope neither man suffers serious injury. This one could be nasty.