The IBF has requested availability from Ben Whittaker and Conor Wallace to compete in a light heavyweight final eliminator bout.
Provided both camps choose to engage, Whittaker and Wallace will compete for the right to face unified WBA, IBF and WBO 175lbs champion Dmitry Bivol.
No.2-ranked Wallace and No.3-ranked Whittaker are the IBF’s highest-rated contenders, with the No.1 spot currently left vacant.
The IBF is the last in the sanctioning body rotation system for Bivol as the Russian slickster recently fulfilled his mandatory obligation by beating Michael Eifert in May.
He has since been ordered to face WBO interim champion Callum Smith amid plans to hold a trilogy bout with Artur Beterbiev in Russia.
Whittaker (12-0-1) dispatched Richard Rivera inside two rounds in his US debut last month, and is expected to return to the ring on October 3 for a homecoming fight in Birmingham.
The expectation was that Whittaker would face a domestic rival such as Anthony Yarde or Craig Richards.
However, he has now been handed a golden opportunity against Australia’s Wallace.
The mind games are already in full flow, with Wallace’s promoter Mick Francis insisting that the fight must take place Down Under.
Ben Whittaker heading Down Under?
Speaking to Top Contenders Boxing, he said: “It’s absolutely official.
“Connor has been waiting for this opportunity for a long time; we all know how slow it moves at the top end.
“They were going to order that fight a couple of weeks ago, but they waited for Ben to have his fight over in the US.
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“So you have No.2 against No.3 for the No.1 spot.
“It’s a fight that Connor wants, and it’s a fight that I feel Connor has a chance to win.
“It’s a 50/50 as far as I am concerned, but we need to bring that fight to Australia.
“This is where we want to have that fight, if they want to put that fight on in Birmingham in October, it is not going to happen.
“Connor Wallace is the A-side. If it’s going to go to purse bids, it will be 75-25.
“If they want to take the fight overseas to the UK, they will have to have deep pockets.
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“Eddie Hearn has a contract over here with Fox Sports.
“What an opportunity to put on a homegrown Aussie-Irish [boxer] against a superstar in the UK.”
Who is Conor Wallace?
Wallace (17-1) is at a similar stage in his career to Whittaker, having yet to be tested at the elite level.
He was defeated via majority decision by Leti Leti for the Australian light heavyweight title in 2021, but rebounded to knock out the Samoan-born fighter in a rematch one year later.
Since the hiccup, Wallace has won ten fights on the bounce, while steadily rising through the IBF and WBO rankings.
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