Nick Ball is set to face undefeated Ludumo Lamati on the undercard of Michael Conlan’s IBF world title clash with Luis Alberto Lopez in Belfast on May 27.
Liverpool featherweight Ball was one of the breakout stars of 2022, racking up three inside-distance wins against Isaac Lowe, Nathanael Kakololo and then Jesus Ramirez Rubio.
He is now 17-0 with 10 KOs and is the current WBC silver champion at 126lbs and looked to be on a collision course with their champion Rey Vargas.
However Ball has also made no secret of his desire for a future fight with Conlan, who gets his second crack at the world title in his hometown on May 27 a year on from his 12th-round knockout by Leigh Wood.
It is understood that Ball was originally penciled in to take on Lamati at the top of a York Hall card in May but he will now get his chance to make a statement at the SSE Arena in Belfast instead.
Lamati, 30, is 21-0-1 (11) and is currently rated at No.7 with the IBF at super-bantamweight but had his last fight at featherweight, when he knocked out seasoned Filipino Mark Anthony Geraldo inside four rounds in November.
He has boxed only once outside his native South Africa, an eight-round points win over Brayan Mairena over eight rounds in Bracknell, England back in 2019.