WBA junior middleweight beltholder Austin Trout is promising “fireworks” in advance of his April 20 clash with WBC counterpart Saul “Canelo” Alvarez, whom he will face on Showtime in a clash of unbeatens at The Alamodome in San Antonio.

“Sparring is going really good. I’m making my sparring partners adjust,” said Trout, 27, from his training facility in Rio Del Sol, New Mexico, adding that he expects to arrive in San Antonio “the Tuesday before the fight.”

“My sparring partners are trying to make the adjustments that we’ll see if Canelo can make, but at the same time, I’m making my own adjustments also. So we’ll see. But I’m looking good.”

Having been ringside when Trout (26-0, 14 knockouts) won a unanimous decision over his brother, Rigoburto Alvarez, in February of 2011 in Guadalajara, Mexico, Saul Alvarez called his bout with Trout “personal.”

“This fight for me is personal. I know Trout beat my brother,” said Alvarez, 22. “I was there that day and that made me feel helpless. Now I’ll get the chance to avenge his loss and bring him up to the ring with me when I win.”

Trout scoffs at the notion of revenge.

“I hear that he wants to take my belt and give it to his brother. I’m like, ‘Why?’ His brother didn’t deserve his belt either. Is that an Alvarez tradition?” said Trout.

“He’s not going to get my belt. I’m not going to let that happen. He doesn’t deserve my belt, so there’s going to be fireworks. But I’m just going to do my talking in the ring.”

Alvarez (41-0, 30 KOs) was also in the arena in December when Trout won his last fight by unanimous decision over three-division titlewinner Miguel Cotto (37-4, 30 KOs) at New York’s Madison Square Garden.

Although Alvarez has said that he will take advantage of the left hook that was often landed by Cotto against Trout, Trout said that he has since developed a better defense for that punch.

“I think, for his part, that Canelo’s going to try to use the same game plan that Cotto did, which he is welcome to try,” said Trout.

“Plus, I’m letting my hands go more and putting more combinations together. As far as the left hook, I don’t get touched with that.”

Trout said he has been working with 28-year-old Donyil Livingston (8-2-1, 4 KOs) and Abraham Han (19-0, 12 KOs), a middleweight and junior middleweight, respectively.

Meanwhile, Alvarez has worked with middleweights Lester Gonzalez and Alex Theran, as well as unbeaten junior middleweight Hugo Centeno.

Theran and Gonzalez are, like Trout, natural left-handers, while Centeno is an orthodox fighter who has been facing Alvarez out of the southpaw stance.

Centeno (18-0, 9 KOs) is a 22-year-old  who is coming off last month’s unanimous decision victory over KeAndrae Leatherwood. Also 22 is Theran (11-0, 8 KOs), a Colombian with three stoppages in his past four fights.

Photo by Stephanie Trapp

Lem Satterfield can be reached at [email protected]