by David P. Greisman
Former 154-pound titleholder Austin Trout is suing promoter Greg Cohen, claiming that Cohen got in the way of Trout potentially appearing on the pay-per-view undercard to Floyd Mayweather’s fight with Canelo Alvarez, among other potential bouts.
The litigation was filed Sept. 12 and reported on by legal publication The Southeast Texas Record, then expanded on by New Mexico newspaper the Albuquerque Journal.
Trout claims that his contract with Greg Cohen Promotions ended earlier this year, but that Cohen nevertheless told Showtime executives that they needed to negotiate with him regarding Trout’s next fight — or else he would take the network to court, the Record reported.
“As a result of Cohen’s actions, Showtime’s negotiations with Trout ended,” the legal publication quoted the litigation as saying. “Cohen not only fraudulently misrepresented his relationship with Trout to Showtime, but has also misguided several other prominent people in the boxing industry by asserting that no one may negotiate or attempt to arrange any fights with Trout unless expressly approved by Cohen.”
Trout’s trainer spoke to the Albuquerque Journal about the case, saying that boxing adviser Al Haymon, who counts Trout as a client, “didn’t want to go forward with anything with this litigation going on.”
That would leave the 28-year-old fighter on the sideline in the meantime. He hasn’t fought since April, when he dropped a unanimous decision and his world title to Canelo Alvarez. It was his first pro loss, bringing his record to 26-1 with 14 knockouts.
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