Anthony Joshua has reportedly come to a big decision that clears the path for Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk to face-off in a unification bout.
The British Olympian lost his three heavyweight titles to Usyk at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September and quickly activated a rematch clause.
That led to a further delay for any heavyweight unification bout, with Fury mandated to defend his WBC belt against Dillian Whyte in the meantime.
However, a significant development has now occurred with it reported Joshua is ready to step aside - and he'll get a huge pay-off as a result.
A fee of £15m is the price being floated for Joshua to step aside in what is a win-win situation for AJ, as it's also expected that he'll get the opportunity to face-off against the winner.
To put that into perspective, Joshua pocketed a guaranteed £10m from his September bout with Usyk - also taking home 60% of the pay-per-view shares, with the final outcome believed the result in around £15m.
That means that Joshua could pocket around the same amount, or potentially more, than he did in his last fight - and it won't be his only payday.
It's highly unlikely that Joshua would remain inactive before facing off against the winner and instead he's likely to take on another opponent, allowing him to prepare for his big redemption shot and gaining some experience under what is expected to be a new team behind him.
Joshua would then earn significant revenue from such a bout, as well as pocketing a healthy sum when he eventually does take to the ring against the winner.
All in all, it's a decision that makes sense financially for Joshua - as well as giving him time to prepare fully for a fight where there will be significant pressure.
