A mouth-watering unification between lightweight world champions Terri Harper and Caroline Dubois is seemingly in the works for later this year.
The possible matchup was mentioned last week by Boxxer promoter Ben Shalom, who told Boxing News that Dubois’ next outing, slated for this summer, will be a unification.
Since she was elevated from interim to full WBC champion, ‘Sweet Caroline’ has amassed a technical draw and majority decision victory against two highly-ranked contenders.
On paper, the results appear relatively uninspiring but, in reality, the 24-year-old was unlucky not to come away from both encounters with comprehensive wins.
She has, after all, barely needed to shift out of second gear as a professional, with the Olympic silver medallist hoping to add another belt to her collection before long.
While newly-crowned WBA titlist Stephanie Han represents a potential opponent, an all-British dustup with Harper, 15-2-2 (6 KOs), now looks to be the more likely option for Dubois, 11-0-1 (5 KOs).
The pair have found themselves on a collision course over the past few months, with WBO champion Harper claiming to have received little more than a ‘lowball’ offer.
With a more sensible series of discussions taking place, however, it would appear that their unification showdown has since been revisited.
Before anything else, Harper must take care of business against unbeaten contender Natalie Zimmermann, with the pair headlining a card at The Eco-Power Stadium, Doncaster, on May 23.
But after that, the 28-year-old is likely to find herself in a more intriguing clash with Dubois.
“I don’t really know how much I can say, but there’s obviously been talks,” Harper told Boxing News.
“I’ve got a job to do [on May 23], so I’m fully focused on that. But yeah, there’ve been a few conversations [with Dubois’ team], and I’m hoping it’s a fight that can be made before the end of the year.”
“That’s the next move for me – to have unification fights. Caroline Dubois is the [unification] that makes sense.
“There’s obviously been a bit of back-and-forth [with Dubois] but, for me, it makes sense to go up against another southpaw.”
Sure enough, Harper produced a scintillating performance against Rhiannon Dixon, her last southpaw opponent, to claim the WBO strap last September.
And once again, the widely supported operator will look to overcome Zimmerman, another lefty, ahead of a mooted fight with Dubois.
