Faith a foundation and exploration for Trout
Austin Trout, right, in action against Jarrett Hurd during the IBF Junior Middleweight World Championship match in October 2017 in New York.
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Religion has long been a part of boxer/bare-knuckle fighter Austin Trout鈥檚 life. He grew in the Christian faith.
In recent years, though, the former Las Cruces resident has been seen and heard speaking in Hebrew at the beginning of pre-fight and post-fight interviews.
It is not, he said during a recent interview, a conversion to Judaism as much as an expansion and an exploration of his beliefs.
鈥淚t鈥檚 not (a conversion) officially,鈥� he said. 鈥淏ut I am inclined to follow Torah.鈥�
Trout said he鈥檚 read the Holy Bible multiple times and became troubled by what he felt were contradictions in the scriptures.
鈥淚t became clearer and clearer that we should follow Torah. 鈥� (Then) more studies and learning from books like Mishnah and the Gemara.
鈥淚 haven鈥檛 officially converted in the synagogue, so to speak. But we鈥檙e inclined to follow the Torah. We celebrate Passover, Yom Kippur, et cetera.鈥�
Of his faith, whether Christianity or Judaism, he said, 鈥淚t鈥檚 always been a big part (of his life).
鈥溾�� Spirituality has led me to try to open my mind to other things. Like, I mean, quantum physics has been kind of an explanation of spirituality and science. It鈥檚 a perfect blend.
鈥淜abbalah (sometimes defined as a Jewish mystical tradition) got me to quantum. It鈥檚 really opened my mind so much.鈥�
As a boxer, Trout won a U.S. amateur national title in 2004 and that year was an Olympic alternate. As a professional, he won a WBA world title in 2011 and has a 37-5-1 record with 18 knockouts.
For Austin Trout, bare-knuckle is where it鈥檚 at
He made his BKFC (bare-knuckle) debut in 2023 and has a 4-0 record. He鈥檚 preparing for a BKFC lightweight title-elimination fight against Luis Palomino on Dec. 5 in Hollywood, Florida.
