According to Bob Spagnola, manager of junior middleweight contender Austin Trout, the boxer is already working hard for a planned fight against IBF world champion Jarrett Hurd.
Spagnola said the contest is being positioned for July 29th at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York - as part of the big Showtime televised card where Adrien Broner and Mikey Garcia will collide in a junior welterweight fight.
Trout (30-3, 17 KOs) has been out of the ring since May 21, 2016, when he lost a close unanimous decision to then IBF champion Jermall Charlo in Las Vegas.
The 26-year-old Hurd is 20-0 with 14 knockouts has been rising in the ranks and appears to be one of the new faces rising up in the sport.
Charlo vacated his IBF world title after making his mandatory defense against Julian Williams last fall. Then Hurd won the vacant IBF title with a stoppage win over Tony Harrison in February.
Trout is very familiar with Hurd after sparring with him in the past. The veteran is very confident in his ability to defeat Hurd. He has a big edge in experience with his past fights against fighters like Miguel Cotto, Erislandy Lara, Canelo Alvarez and Charlo.
"It's all in God's plan," said Trout to the El Paso Times. "It's been a test for me in terms of patience and faith, but I've kept growing, kept in good shape. I'm excited for the opportunity. There are some moving parts to this fight but we're hoping for July 29. I feel good, my legs are still strong. I've sparred with Jarrett before. He'll be in shape. But I feel confident and I want to be a world champion once again."
Trout is training in Las Cruces with trainer Louie Burke.
"Austin is back in the gym and we've had some good workouts already," Burke said. "We're excited about the next opportunity."