By Keith Idec

Artur Beterbiev’s promoter won a purse bid Thursday for the right to promote the IBF light heavyweight elimination match between contenders Beterbiev and Sullivan Barrera.

The purse bid took place Thursday afternoon at the IBF’s headquarters in Springfield, New Jersey.

Quebec’s Yvon Michel, Beterbiev’s promoter, won with a bid of $251,000. Main Events, the New Jersey company that promotes Barrera, bid just over $181,000.

Michel and Main Events were the only promoters to submit bids.

Michel has 15 days to submit an official contract for the fight, including the date and site, to Main Events. The Beterbiev-Barrera fight must be scheduled for within 90 days of Thursday.

There would be a 75-25 split in favor of Beterbiev for this bout. That means Beterbiev would earn $188,250 if it were to happen. Barrera’s cut would be $62,750.

Michel would like to pair a bout between the Russian-born Beterbiev (11-0, 11 KOs) and the Cuban-born Barrera (18-1, 13 KOs) on a card that would feature another Michel-promoted light heavyweight, Adonis Stevenson, and Joe Smith.

Michel has been negotiating with Joe DeGuardia, Smith’s promoter, to arrange a Stevenson-Smith match for Stevenson’s WBC light heavyweight title for April 29 at the newly renovated Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York. Smith (23-1, 19 KOs), of Mastic, New York, is a popular fighter on Long Island and having him participate in a world title fight in the first boxing event at the new Nassau Coliseum would attract positive publicity for the venue.

Smith has other options, though, and his next fight might not come against Stevenson (28-1, 23 KOs). That could complicate the placement of a Beterbiev-Barrera bout, although Michel’s intention is to expose Beterbiev to American boxing fans by bringing his next fight to the United States.

Beterbiev resides in Montreal. Other than one fight in Chicago in June 2015, he has fought exclusively in Quebec since he turned pro in June 2013.

Meanwhile, Kathy Duva, Main Events’ chief executive officer, told BoxingScene.com on Thursday that she will keep Barrera’s options open.

“We just have to see what happens,” Duva said. “We just don’t have any information, as far as when and where it is. We have plans for Barrera, and we could reinstitute those. But he clearly wants this fight [against Beterbiev].”

Keith Idec is a senior writer/columnist for BoxingScene.com. He can be reached on Twitter @Idecboxing.