Naoya Inoue remains on the hunt for a title unification bout, though at least one sanctioning body plans to have a mandatory challenger waiting in the wings.

BoxingScene.com has confirmed that the WBA has tentatively approved a request for a discussed bout between Melvin Lopez and Ramon Cardenas to serve as a final title eliminator. The winner of the planned fight—currently targeted to take place this spring at a yet-to-be-determined U.S. location—will become the mandatory challenger to Inoue’s WBA “Super” bantamweight title.

“The Championship Committee acknowledges receipt of your request to approve the WBA Bantamweight Final Eliminator fight between Melvin Lopez vs. Ramon Cardenas to be held on April 2022 in USA,” Carlos Chavez, chairman of the WBA Championship Committee noted in a letter to the involved parties, a copy of which has been obtained by BoxingScene.com. “Please consider this letter as a tentative sanction approval of the Lopez v. Cardenas for WBA Bantamweight Final Eliminator for the Super Championship of the division.”

San Antonio’s Cardenas (20-1, 10KOs) is represented by Anthony Ojeda’s Boxlab Promotions, while Lopez—a Nicaraguan boxer based out of Miami—is with Team M&R Boxing Promotions headed by Laura Ching. Cardenas is currently slated to headline a March 26 show at Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando versus an opponent to be determined. It is not yet confirmed that the date will serve as the home for the proposed title eliminator with Lopez.

Both fighters have been out of the ring since last summer, each riding extended winning streaks since suffering the lone loss of their respective careers.

Lopez (26-1, 17KOs) has won five in a row, all by knockout since suffering a ninth-round stoppage at the hands of Chile’s Jose Velasquez in October 2019. Velasquez went on to challenge current WBA/IBF junior featherweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev, dropping a twelve-round decision in the short-notice assignment last November.

Meanwhile, Lopez has punched his way back into contention. The 24-year-old bantamweight has emerged as a local favorite in the greater Miami area, with each of his past five starts ending inside of five rounds. Lopez scored a fifth-round knockout of Daniel Lozano in his most recent start last August in Miami.

Cardenas has won eight in a row since an upset points loss to Danny Flores in April 2017. The 26-year-old Mexican American has linked up with Orlando-based Boxlab Promotions since the pandemic, having won two in a row with the Central Florida-based outfit including a third-round knockout of Marvin Solano in his most recent start last August.

Lopez and Cardenas are ranked number-three and number-four, respectively, in the most recent edition of the WBA bantamweight ratings.

The winner will take a massive leap in competition versus Inoue (22-0, 19KOs), who is on the short list of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world today. The three-division champ from Yokohama, Japan currently holds the WBA “Super" and IBF titles, eager to add a third belt. As previously reported by BoxingScene.com’s Manouk Akopyan, Inoue is presently in talks for a rematch with four-division and current WBC bantamweight titlist Nonito Donaire, among the greatest-ever Phillipines-born fighters in history. The aforementioned title eliminator will not stand in the way from such a fight happening should the two come to terms, though the winner can expect to next defend against the WBA mandatory who is next in the rotation.

Inoue honored his IBF mandatory in a third-round knockout of Michael Dasmarinas last June; Donaire was the WBC mandatory at the time of his fourth-round knockout of unbeaten Nordine Oubaali last May at Dignity Health Sports Park in Carson, California, repeating the feat in the exact same venue versus unbeaten interim titlist and countryman Reymart Gaballo last December 11.

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox