Heavyweight Anthony Joshua has begun talks to fight fellow Briton Daniel Dubois in September.
Joshua, 34, is expected to fight at Wembley Stadium on 21 September and was ringside to watch Dubois beat Filip Hrgovic last Saturday in Saudi Arabia.
Dubois’ promoter Frank Warren confirmed talks were under way.
Dubois, 26, stopped Hrgovic in their IBF ‘interim’ title fight, putting himself in prime position to be called as the next mandatory challenger to Oleksandr Usyk.
Ukrainian Usyk has requested his IBF belt not be stripped so the undisputed title can remain on the line when he fights Tyson Fury in their rematch on 21 December.
If the IBF decides to strip Usyk, Dubois could be elevated to world champion and that could then make a fight with Joshua a title bout.
Joshua is on a four-fight winning streak and is already a two-time unified world champion.
After losing those world titles in successive defeats by Usyk, Joshua has rebuilt himself in fine fashion, producing three stoppages in his four wins.
Dubois too has been on the comeback trail with two victories since failing in his own bid to dethrone Usyk in August 2023.
The Londoner stopped Jarrell Miller and Hrgovic, the latter being a fight Dubois was an underdog in.
