By David "Los Gatos" Rosenberg

According to Top Rank's CEO, Bob Arum, former middleweight champion Kelly Pavlik (37-2, 32KOs) is going to take a tuneup fight in the summer, likely in Youngstown, Ohio. Arum disclosed that he's still negotiating with InterBox for a fall clash between Pavlik and IBF super middleweight champion Lucian Bute (28-0, 23KOs), who defends against Jean Paul Mendy on July 9th in Romania. In a recent BoxingScene.com interview, Pavlik's manager, Cameron Dunkin, discussed the likelihood of his boxer taking a tuneup prior to facing Bute.