The Anthony Joshua-Eric Molina undercard just got a shot in the arm in the form of Callum Smith defending his British super middleweight title against Luke Blackledge.
The undefeated Smith will fight for the fourth time in under 10 months and is primed for a world title opportunity should he win.
Promoter Eddie Hearn told ESPN that Smith will face the winner of the James DeGale and Badou Jack super middleweight world title unification fight on January 14, 2017. Hearn said he is hoping DeGale wins his upcoming fight so that he can have the Smith-DeGale held in the United Kingdom.
Smith, on the other hand, has no preference as to who his future opponent is going to be and is excited to fight Blackledge.
"Luke is a good fighter," Smith said. "He comes to win, he's game and durable, and it promises to be a cracking fight. I'm proud to be British champion, and I'll defend it until I can get a fight for a world title. It's a win-win for me. If Jack wins it'll probably be in Vegas, and that's every fighter's dream to fight for a world title in Vegas. But if James wins, which I think he will, then that's a massive domestic fight, and we've seen that the British fans love those events."
Blackledge has won his last eight fights, with his most recent win taking place back in October against Elvis Dube.
Joshua and Molina will main event that card from the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England for Joshua's IBF heavyweight title.
