World Boxing Council President Mauricio Sulaiman indicates that his organization will be speaking to WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury - to discuss the unbeaten boxer's title status.
Dillian Whyte, who holds the WBC's interim title and is currently the mandatory challenger, has taken legal action against the sanctioning body to enforce his title shot.
Pursuant to a WBC order from last year, Whyte is due a shot at the belt by February 2021.
Fury is contracted to face Deontay Wilder in a trilogy fight. Currently the promoters are targeting dates in December to stage that fight.
Because of the coronavirus pandemic, boxing was put on hold for several months. The sport is slowly starting to resume.
The Fury-Wilder trilogy was initially targeted for a date of July 18 - before the pandemic pushed it back.
If Fury fights Wilder in December, it would be impossible to do a quick enough turnaround to face Whyte in February.
There is also the possibility that the WBC will make Fury a 'franchise champion' - which in turn would automatically elevate Whyte to full champion.
Franchise champions are not obligated to make any mandatory defenses. Last year the sanctioning body gave the 'franchise' status to Canelo Alvarez and Vasiliy Lomachenko.
"We are addressing every weight category separately. The WBC is in the process of contacting every champion to assess their current status and plans. The WBC will be looking into each category and will review each case and rule taking into consideration the variables that have to do with each case," Sulaiman told Sky Sports.
Fury's co-promoter, Bob Arum of Top Rank, has already made it clear that he won't allow his fighter to get tied up with a mandatory defense.
"These organisations will be cognizant that the mandatories must be pushed into the future because fighters, for at least three months, had no ability to fight. Then after those three months, the fights will be without spectators," Arum said to Sky Sports.
"We will be talking to the organisations to eliminate mandatories, or to postpone them all for at least one year. I am sick and tired of being forced, with my marquee fighters, to fight meaningless fights against mandatories that mean nothing."
