Oleksandr Usyk is reportedly in negotiations with Dana White's Zuffa Boxing to close out his career against former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder.
Usyk shocked the boxing world last week when he announced that he would be vacating his WBA, WBC and IBF titles after nearly five years as heavyweight champion.
In his announcement the Ukrainian insisted that he was not immediately retiring, and would instead pursue one final fight to close out his legendary career before hanging up his gloves.
While a potential trilogy bout with Tyson Fury had been speculated as a potential farewell fight for Usyk, his team have revealed that negotiations are underway with Zuffa Boxing over a potential clash with Wilder.
"Usyk has already stated that he sees Deontay Wilder as the opponent for his last dance," Usyk's team director, Sergey Lapin, told BBC Sport.
"It is a match-up with significant potential from a sporting, media and international perspective."
He continued: "We are in direct discussions with Zuffa Boxing at the highest level. At this stage, no agreements have been signed,"
"Zuffa Boxing is being considered as one of the potential partners for a major international event.
- Sergey Lapin, Oleksandr Uysk's team director
"The final structure will be determined based on what is in the best interests of the fight, the fighters, and the overall scale of the project."
Led by the UFC president White and backed the financial might of Saudi boxing chief Turki Al-Sheikh, Zuffa Boxing have emerged as a significant disruptor in the world of boxing since launching operations in September of last year.
The burgeoning promotion has made waves with signing the likes of Conor Benn and Jai Opetaia to lucrative contracts, and reports suggest they were in talks to sign Wilder earlier this year in an attempt to add some much-needed star power to their fledgling heavyweight division.
During his prime Wilder was regarded as one of the greatest KO artists the division has ever seen, with 39 of his first 40 fights being stopped inside the distance.
In his most recent outing he defeated Derek Chisora by split decision at the O2 Arena, marking the first time he has secured back-to-back wins since 2019.
Meanwhile in May Usyk extended his professional record to a perfect 25-0 with an 11th-round stoppage of former kickboxing champion Rico Verhoeven at an event held at venue constructed specifically for the fight at the Pyramids of Giza.
While he was ultimately able to get his hand raised, Usyk struggled to deal with the relative novice throughout much of the bout, and many observers believed Verhoeven was on the verge of winning at the time of the stoppage.
