Trout and Lara Beef On Conference Call

Austin Trout and Erislandy Lara gave perhaps a hint of the tenor of their Dec. 7 154 pound showdown at Barclays Center on a Tuesday conference call to hype the Golden Boy card, portions of which will run on Showtime. They traded barbs, and I have to say it was an even fight.

Promoter Richard Schaefer noted the TV portion will be a tripleheader, and he said he anticipates the largest ever boxing crowd at Barclays since the building started running fights in October of last year.

Devon Alexander, the IBF welter champ was on the call with foe Shawn Porter after Trout and Lara finished up. Trout, the former WBA junior middleweight champ, was on the call with his foe, Erislandy Lara, the interim WBA 154 pound champ. Lara, a Cuban defector, beat Alfredo Angulo (TKO10) in his last outing. The 18-1-2 hitter, who lives in Texas, said he’s been working hard in the gym. Trout, with a 26-1 record, said that he thinks Lara is sharp technically, is very experienced, is a good ring general, and he maybe lacks heart and the will to win. Lara said that he thinks Trout is “OK” but is on his way out. Let’s see in the ring, he said, who has more heart.

Schaefer said Carlos Molina and Canelo Alvarez and Floyd Mayweather and Alfredo Angulo are in this region, but mentioned specifically that a fight with Canelo Alvarez could be in play for the winner.

Trout said he’s fully focused on Lara and isn’t thinking about a Canelo rematch. Lara too said his eyes are only on his Dec. 7 foe. He just wants to bust up Trout’s mouth, he said.

This is a lefty vs. lefty clash. Trout said he’s not Paul Williams, or any other lefty. He said he will “make him look like the amateur he is.” Lara said the difference between Williams and Trout is that Williams has cajones, and Trout just runs. Trout said that Lara runs, he doesn’t run. He said Lara just warred versus Angulo because Angulo made him do so. He said Lara is a runner, that he ran from Cuba, and runs in the ring. Lara said “that’s what he’s always done in all his fights.”

The Cuban was dropped twice in the Angulo bout. He said Angulo is a “big puncher,” and those were “perfect punches,” and in the end, he won. If the fight with Trout goes to the cards, Lara said that in the past, he has lost on the cards when fighting on other promoters’ cards. That won’t be the case this time, he maintained.

Would he gun for a KO, to remove the judges from the equation? No, he said, he will be calm, and do his job, and win.

Trout said he thought Canelo made them both look bad with his outing versus Floyd Mayweather and wished he got the call, not the Mexican. A win over Lara is a nice feather in his cap. He wants to beat Lara, and then go after the pound for pound “big hitters,” he said.

Trout referenced his legal beef with promoter Greg Cohen. He said that has kept him ont he shelf for an extra bit. He said he is very happy he is not with Greg Cohen Promotions anymore, and made clear the squabble was heated. Trout said he hasn’t signed with Golden Boy, but has a good relationship with them.

Readers, who do you like in this one?

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