Austin Trout Reflects On Relationship With Late Vanes Martirosyan Ahead Of BKFC 85 Title Fight [Exclusive]

Two months after the sudden death of Ricky Hatton, the boxing world suffered another premature loss when Vanes Martirosyan tragically passed on Nov. 23.

Although Martirosyan never won a world title, die-hard boxing fans are familiar with his name. The Soviet-born American competed in three different world title bouts at the end of his career, falling short against Demetrius Andrade, Erislandy Lara and Gennady Golovkin.

Martirosyan initially became a household name the year before he turned pro, when he was a member of the esteemed 2004 United States Olympic Boxing team. 'The Nightmare' was the US welterweight representative, making him a teammate of Andre Ward and Andre Dirrell.

Austin Trout recalls Olympic trial fight with Vanes Martirosyan

Martirosyan beat familiar foe Austin Trout to make the team, who still recalls their legendary battles on the amateur circuit. 'No Doubt' still considers his failure to make the final roster one of the biggest "what if" moments of his career.

Trout recalls giving Martirosyan "a good fight," but succumbing to the latter for a third time. Martirosyan ended up being the United States' welterweight representative at the 2004 Athens Summer Olympics, with Trout as the alternate.

"We saw each other at tournaments, and we ended up fighting each other a few times," Trout told KO on SI. "I lost to Vanes for the 2004 Olympics, so I was an alternate, while he was the Olympian. But even though it was like a rivalry, we had a good friendship. He was one of the toughest guys I know. Heart made of gold. Just a real, genuine, nice dude."

Martirosyan got the better of their head-to-head amateur matchups, but Trout had the better professional career. Trout went on to claim the WBA super welterweight title in 2011, a belt he would hold until losing it to Canelo Alvarez in 2014.

Austin Trout reflects on Vanes Martirosyan friendship

Trout's win caused speculation that a fourth bout with the then-undefeated Martirosyan might occur for the belt. The fight never materialized, and Trout recalls viewing his former rival as more of a friend than a potential opponent from that point on.

"Our careers kind of just coincided along each other," Trout said. "We always been around each other in the boxing world the whole time, you know? It's crazy."

Their parallel careers led to the fighters facing many similar opponents and even fighting on the same night. Martirosyan first fought Lara to a draw in 2012, just a few months before the Cuban defended the WBA interim middleweight title against Trout.

Martirosyan rematched Lara for the WBA and IBO super welterweight titles in 2016 in the second-to-last fight of his career. Trout also fought for a belt that same night, dropping a controversial unanimous decision to IBF super welterweight champion Jermall Charlo.

The unique friendship remained intact through Martirosyan's final days. Trout, who continued boxing for five more years after Martirosyan's final fight before transitioning to the BKFC, was saddened to hear of his associate's legal issues, which effectively ended his career.

The situation went from bad to worse when Martirosyan confirmed his battle with skin cancer in 2023. Trout admitted he reached out to his wounded friend upon hearing the news and remained in touch until his death.

Martirosyan's death occurred in the final weeks of Trout's fight camp as he prepares for a rematch with Luis Palomino in the BKFC 85 main event. The former BKFC welterweight champion was knee-deep in his first cut down to 155 pounds since 2018, but still took time to pay homage to Martirosyan on social media.

"We're going to miss Vanes. Rest in peace to Vanes Martirosyan, the man that took my Olympic spot."

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