A bout this summer between Manny Pacquiao and Keith Thurman could shape the future of the welterweight division as the top fighters jostle for position.
The welterweight division has historically been one of the marquee divisions in the boxing world and the current crop of fighters are capable of carrying that mantle for the forseeable future.
Terence 'Bud' Crawford is coming off a controversial, albeit one-sided, stoppage of Amir Khan - dominating the Briton from the off to cement his place in the top 10 pound-for-pound fighters on the planet.
Erroll Spence Junior hammered the undersized Mikey Garcia in March - pounding him into a lopsided points defeat.
Crawford against Spence is the most anticipated fight in the division although they both have different promoters and Bob Arum and Al Haymon loath to work together.
And therein lies the problem for Crawford, Arum and Top Rank. Arum has already suggested a 50/50 split for a Crawford v Spence clash but has played his strongest hand already.
Spence is joined in Haymon's Premier Boxing Champions stable by Keith Thurman, Manny Pacquiao, Shawn Porter and Danny Garcia - all of whom fit comfortably in the top 10 of the welterweight division.
Manny Pacquiao, boxing's only eight division champion, is coming off a satisfying points win over Adrien Broner while Keith Thurman returned to the ring after an almost two year hiatus to out-point Josesito Lopez.
Manny Pacquiao lands a punch on Adrien Broner. Photo by Gene Blevins/ZumaPress. (Credit Image: © Gene Blevins/ZUMA Wire)Thurman (29-0) had risen to the top of the pile with dominant, consecutive wins over Robert Guerrero, Luis Collazo, Shawn Porter and Danny Garcia - only for elbow and wrist injuries to halt his progress.
The American looked rusty against Lopez last time out and a bout with the Filipino legend would make for a compelling match-up. Pacquiao displayed a smarter ring IQ against Broner - targeting the body relentlessly throughout in a move from his usual buzzsaw style.
A bout between the pair is in the works for this summer and would be a worthy pay-per-view headliner - giving the fans an action-packed bout with the winner most likely to progress to a clash with Erroll Spence later in the year.
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