By Jake Donovan

Industry-wide patience has been exhausted waiting on the finalization of a long-rumored welterweight showdown between Keith Thurman and Shawn Porter.

Fans can begin to breathe easier, as full details are finally falling into place.

Sources have informed BoxingScene.com that the highly anticipated welterweight clash will take place on March 5 at MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. A hold has been placed on the location pending approval from the Nevada State Athletic Commission, with the item part of a loaded monthly agenda hearing scheduled for January 12, also in Las Vegas.

Representatives from the Nevada commission declined comment as this goes to publish, other than to confirm that a hold as been placed for the date. Such news was first revealed by Las Vegas Review-Journal's Steve Carp. 

The show will air live in the inaugural installment of Premier Boxing Champions (PBC) on CBS in primetime, with at least one other major bout – potentially a title fight - added to the telecast. The series has previously aired on the free-to-air network in Saturday afternoon editions, as well as two special Sunday afternoon showings.

The March 5 show will help launch a new time slot, the third such time in as many fights that Thurman (26-0, 22KOs) will perform such a role.

“We will have to change his nickname from ‘One Time’ to Prime Time,” noted one source involved with the ongoing development of this particular bout.

Thurman headlined the very first PBC event, scoring a 12-round decision over Robert Guerrero last March, having also taken place at MGM Grand. The bout aired live in primetime on NBC, serving as the most watched televised fight of 2015 in drawing an average of 3.4 million viewers, with the telecast peaking at 4 million viewers.

His showdown with Porter (26-1-1, 16KOs) will come exactly 52 weeks after that watershed moment, though not before enduring months of speculation as to whether or not the fight would happen at all.

Thurman also topped the initial installment of PBC on ESPN, stopping Luis Collazo after seven rounds of a home region showcase last July in Tampa, Florida.

Early rumors had Thurman-Porter slated to headline the 2015 season finale of PBC on NBC, which would have come December 12 at AT&T Center in San Antonio, the very city which hosted a pair of breakout wins in 2013 with knockouts over Diego Chaves and Jesus Soto Karass. The timing of the fight would have been perfect, as the winner would have garnered strong consideration in an otherwise wide-open 2015 Fighter of the Year race.

The matchup was instead inexplicably delayed, with an assortment of excuses offered as to why it wasn’t the right time for the fight. The news was met with a collective groan, with Team Porter included among the lot as the former champ from Ohio has been out of the ring since a 12-round win over Adrien Broner last June.

Porter’s victory over his in-state rival (despite the billed ‘Battle of Ohio’ taking place in Las Vegas) marked his best career performance since claiming a welterweight belt with a 12-round nod over Devon Alexander in Dec. ’13. His reign was short-lived, conceding his crown with a decision loss to Kell Brook in Aug. ’14.

The win over Broner should have served as a career revival, but Porter has been stuck on the sidelines awaiting his next big break in the form of a coveted showdown with Thurman.

Once the Dec. 12 date was ruled out, speculation arose as to whether Thurman’s shoulder would be tapped to help launch the forthcoming PBC on Fox primetime series. The assignment instead went to his old rival Guerrero, who will face unbeaten former 140 lb. king Danny Garcia on January 23 in Los Angeles.

There was talk of Thurman-Porter landing sometime in February, but couldn’t match up any of the proposed dates with the desired venue or network. The strongest rumors surrounding the fight suggested a February 27 headliner, which would have been ideal for primetime as it lands at the end of sweeps month and had been preceded by six hours of college basketball coverage on CBS.

It’s unknown whether the decision to change the date was at all motivated by the recent announcement of an HBO-televised doubleheader on that same night. Terence Crawford and Felix Verdejo will appear in separate bouts against opponents to be determined at Madison Square Garden Theatre in New York City.

A February 13 showing was once mentioned, though ruled out once it was decided that CBS would showcase the fight. The date is currently reserved for the CBS News Republican Debate. February 20 was also mentioned but almost as quickly ruled out, as there exists plans for a third fight between super featherweight Roman Martinez and Orlando Salido, which is rumored to headline on premium cable outlet Showtime, which is part of the CBS Corporation family.

Looking to no longer delay a bout months in the making, it was decided by all parties to move forward with the March 5 showing. As would have been the case with a February 27 airing, the primetime boxing card will follow a loaded afternoon of NCAA men’s basketball coverage.

As for any suggestions of either fighter being less than willing to take on the challenge, those rumors can finally be put to rest.

“Whenever they propose me with a fight, I never hesitate,” insists Thurman, an unbeaten 27-year old from Clearwater, Florida who was named “Fighter of the Year” among network executives and broadcasts from PBC affiliated networks NBC/NBC Sports Network, ABC, CBS, Spike TV and Bounce TV. “You can call me the 'yes man' because I always say yes.”

Now that event handlers have also finally said yes, boxing fans merely need to sit back and wait for the long-awaited welterweight clash to finally go down.

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox