Former light heavyweight and now super middleweight contender “Tenacious” Trevor McCumby (25-0, 19 KOs) is back in the ring tonight after a four-and-a-half-year hiatus. Felix Gracia of ITR caught up with him earlier this week, and in an interview he spoke with Trevor about his return to the ring. The interview will be attached at the bottom of the article and I highly recommend checking it out.

McCumby started boxing at the age of seven and was a ten-time national champion as an amateur. He turned pro in 2010 at seventeen years of age with a special license from Nevada and was on an eight-year tear before his layoff. His record stands at an impressive 25-0 with 19 knockouts; 11 of those knockouts came in the very first round.

He feels rejuvenated after the layoff and is eager to get back to competing. He has been sparring with top guys out in Vegas and feels sharper than he ever did before. McCumby said that he had every intention of coming back to compete this year and is ready for whatever opportunities are presented to him.

A lot has changed in McCumby’s personal life since he was last in the ring. He is now a married father of two, and credits his discipline and motivation to have a better life as his driving forces during this comeback. He mentioned how he liked the current landscape at 168lbs, and that along with his goal of becoming a two-division champion lead to him now campaigning at super middleweight.

There are a number of fighters who he said he had his eye on. Of course at 168lbs it all starts with undisputed champion Saul “Canelo” Alvarez (58-2-2, 39 KOs), but McCumby also spoke on how a fight between him and David Benavidez (27-0, 23 KOs) would be a great fight as well. He has sparred with the two-time super middleweight champion in the past and is confident that he possesses the skills necessary to hang at the top level.

He also brought up that a fight with current unified light heavyweight champion Artur Beterbiev (19-0, 19 KOs) is another fight that he would love. Not many guys are quick to call out someone like Beterbiev, but McCumby said how he loves challenges. He spoke on how he tends to fight to the level of his opponents, and that the bigger the challenge ahead of him is, the better version of him we will see.

Most fighters coming off of nearly a five-year layoff take a fight against an opponent who may not have the most impressive record on paper in their first fight back. McCumby is not doing that and is stepping in with an experienced veteran who is looking to spoil his anticipated return. Vicente Martin Rodriguez (41-13-1, 22 KOs) is a respected competitor who will most likely be looking to survive early and take McCumby into the later rounds. An early stoppage would be a major statement and would let the boxing world know that Trevor is indeed back better than ever before and that he is a real threat in the 168 and 175lb divisions.

Here I have attached the entire interview that Felix conducted earlier this week, give it a listen!