BOUCHERVILLE, Que. — Former boxing champion Lucian Bute has opted for an amicable split with longtime trainer Stephan Larouche.
The struggling Bute, a former International Boxing Federation super-middleweight champion, said Wednesday he will continue his boxing career under a new trainer.
Larouche, who has trained Bute (31-2) since he moved from Romania to turn pro in 2003, said it was in the fighter’s best interests to make a change. It also ended rumours that the 34-year-old would retire.
The process of finding a new trainer is to begin soon. Larouche said he may remain involved with Bute’s new training team in some capacity.
The discussions began after a one-sided defeat to Montreal rival Jean Pascal on Jan. 18.
Bute won the IBF title in 2007 and defended it nine times before enduring a crushing five-round loss to Carl Froch in 2012.
He was unimpressive in a 12-round unanimous decision over Denis Grachev in December 2012 and then looked frozen in the ring against Pascal, the former WBC light heavyweight champ.
Bute went through a battery of physical and psychological tests in recent months, consulting with about 10 professionals in Canada and Romania. The results showed he was in perfect health.
Without going into details, Bedard said it may be better to concentrate on removing a “psychological block” that causes him to struggle in the ring.
Bute set no timeline to fight again, saying it could be in “three months, six months or a year.”
Meanwhile, there are big fights coming up for two other Montreal boxers.
Power-punching left-hander Adonis Stevenson (23-1) is to make a third defence of his WBC light heavyweight title on May 24 at the Bell Centre against Andrzej Fonfara (25-2), a native of Poland fighting out of Chicago.
And Bermane Stiverne (23-1-1) will fight Chris Arreola (36-3) for the vacant WBC heavyweight title on May 10 at the Galen Center in Los Angeles. Stiverne scored a lopsided decision over Arreola in his last outing in April in Ontario, Calif. The title was formerly held by the retired Vitali Klitschko of Ukraine.