Gary Russell Jr. has thoroughly enjoyed his time near the top of the featherweight division. Before suffering a shoulder injury in his most recent trip to the ring, Russell presided over the boxing world as the longest-reigning champion.

Yet, with Mark Magsayo truncating his championship run, Russell (31-2, 18 KOs) is just about done competing at 126 pounds. As the 34-year-old continues his rehab stint, he recently revealed that he’s washing his hands of the lone division he’s ever known.

“There’s no need to stay at 26,” said Russell to BoxingScene.com when asked what he plans to do next.  

Since losing his WBC world title, his championship trinket has begun to make the rounds. Magsayo, in his very next fight, proved to be nothing more than a transient titlist, losing his newly won belt at the hands of Rey Vargas.

While Russell could push the envelope and work his way back into the upper echelon of the division, he remains uninterested in doing so. Instead, the 34-year-old believes that it would be sagacious to continue his career at a higher weight class.

Over the years, the speedy former champion has perpetually called out the likes of Terence Crawford, Devin Haney, and Leo Santa Cruz, all of which preside in different weight classes.

By and large, the norm for fighters who opt to move up in weight would be to do so at a reserved pace of one singular division. Russell, however, isn’t exactly sure that fighting the best fighters at 130 pounds would truly get his engine going. Rather, the Maryland native reveals that he’s vacillating between a pair of options. Although he hasn't officially made up his mind, the former WBC belt holder acknowledges that sooner than later, he’ll pick one particular weight class to compete in for the foreseeable future.

“To be honest, 30, 35, I don’t know, we’ll see.”