Earlier this week, Tyson Fury has informed the World Boxing Council he plans to fight an as-yet-unnamed opponent before any rematch with reigning WBC heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder.
Wilder and Fury fought to a controversial twelve round split draw at Staples Center in Los Angeles in December, in the main event of Showtime Pay-Per-View card.
Their rematch is likely to be one of the most anticipated fights of the year following a first meeting which reignited a fire in the heavyweight division.
Wilder, who sent Fury to the canvas twice in their first fight, mocked the Briton for delaying the rematch.
Fury jabbed back with a dig at Wilder's perceived low profile amongst mainstream US sports fans.
Doubts over a rematch first emerged last week when Fury signed a multi-fight deal with Top Rank and their network partner ESPN.
Top Rank, is owned by veteran promoter Bob Arum, has a history of difficult negotiations with Al Haymon, one of Wilder's co-managers.
The WBC had earlier ordered direct rematch between Wilder and Fury following their December 1 meeting.
"Wilder and Fury gave boxing one of the best fights in the heavyweight division in a long time, which has created tremendous popular demand for the fans to see a rematch," the WBC said in December.
Wilder, who retained his title with a controversial split decision draw against Fury, had stated his desire to schedule a rematch as quickly as possible.
"I'm ready to do it again," Wilder said last December. "I'm looking forward to giving him the rematch as soon as possible."
WBC President Mauricio Sulaiman states that his organization is going to make a ruling in the very near future.
The WBC mandatory challenger is Dominic Breazeale, who has the frontrunner position to face Wilder on May 18th.
On the other hand, the WBC recently ordered Breazeale to face Dillian Whyte in a final eliminator for the interim title.
"For the moment, what we have to do is go to the [WBC's] Governing Board," Sulaiman said to Univiison. "There is the official challenger (Dominic Breazeale ), but we had already placed him in a fight for the interim title and we have to address that issue - but we are going to unconditionally support Wilder because he has fulfilled all the mandates."