Fresh negotiations for Anthony Joshua to face Deontay Wilder were held this month and Matchroom Boxing chairman Barry Hearn remains hopeful the unification clash will be staged next year.
Joshua has urged his promotional team to fulfil his ambitions of fighting for all the heavyweight world titles and he is edging closer to a clash with WBO champion Joseph Parker in March or April.
WBC title holder Deontay Wilder has also been targeted by Joshua, the WBA ‘Super’ and IBF champion, and Hearn is optimistic this blockbuster bout can take place after holding recent talks with the American’s advisor Shelly Finkel.
“I’ve known Shelly Finkel for 30 years, sociably as friends, as business people,” Hearn exclusively told Sky Sports. “We sit down, two old men, discussing fights we would like to see made. I can’t call them positive, but I call them open as two friends would talk openly.
“The detail will go down when Eddie sits down with Al Haymon, because they are the two guys who actually call the shots. Shelly and I are advisors and I think it’s a fight that we would both like to see. There is no reason why it can’t be staged next summer.”
Hearn has backed Joshua to become undisputed champion, with four belts by the end of next year.