Xu pursuing the ultimate prize

China's featherweight champion not ducking division's best as talks open over unification bout

China's World Boxing Association champion Xu Can is ready to step up in class as he targets a prestigious unification bout in the featherweight division.

Having successfully defended his title twice, Xu, aka "The Monster", is preparing to next face either International Boxing Federation champ Josh Warrington or World Boxing Organization title holder Shakur Stevenson.

Rather than facing a mandatory challenger within the WBA, a unification bout is the better career move for Xu, promoter Liu Gang of Beijing-based Max Power Promotions told Chinese media on Tuesday.

"The WBA has sent us notice on Xu's mandatory but he's determined to set his sights on a much bigger goal, a unification fight, for the sake of his career," said Liu, who discovered Xu's talent at a boxing club in Yunnan province a decade ago.

"As far as any further challengers are concerned, we plan to discuss things with the WBA following the unification bout."

Liu said his team is now in negotiations with representatives of both Warrington and Stevenson but insisted that the IBF champ is Xu's preference.

"If we had a choice, Warrington sure is our priority," Liu said. "They both showed a certain amount of interest in facing Xu, but Warrington is the rival that Xu has always wanted to fight because Xu only fights the best of the best."

Hostilities between Xu (18-2, 3 KOs) and Warrington (30-0, 7 KOs) have been simmering in recent months.

"Josh, you call me out? Now I'm here. You see I'm here, right? Let's fight. Let's unify. Anywhere. I can fight anywhere. I promise I will bring the belt back home to China," Xu said after beating Manny Robles III via unanimous decision to retain his WBA title in California in November.

After successfully defending his IBF title for a third time with a second-round KO against Sofiane Takoucht last October, Warrington, a British fighter hailing from Leeds, admitted a fight with Xu could be next on his agenda.

"I am keeping my options open. If Xu Can wants to fight, I am ready," said the 29-year-old, who goes by the ring moniker "The Leeds Warrior".

Both Xu and Warrington boast a similar style characterized by volume over power, with their potential match-up promising to be a ferocious contest.

Xu's incredible energy was underlined by the staggering 1,562 punches he threw against Robles, but although Warrington hits less, the Brit is regarded as the more powerful puncher.

"I believe I can beat any other featherweight in this division," Warrington told Sky Sports last month after rejoining his former promoter Eddie Hearn at Matchroom Boxing.

"They've all got their own little perks. Xu Can, you put us in a phone box, a very entertaining fight. He throws a lot of punches, I throw a lot of punches."

As of December 2019, Warrington was ranked as the world's best active featherweight by Box-Rec.com and The Ring.

American promotion Top Rank is also interested in matching its WBO champion Stevenson against Xu, according to Liu.

Stevenson (13-0, 7KOs), a 22-year-old southpaw from New Jersey, defeated compatriot Joet Gonzalez via unanimous decision to claim the vacant WBO featherweight title in October－a fight Stevenson dominated with his trademark quick-fire combinations of jabs and body shots.

Due to the global coronavirus pandemic, Liu says any fight against Stevenson or Warrington is unlikely to be staged until the end of May or early June.

If Xu keeps winning, the 26-year-old from Jiangxi province will become the world's only unified champion in the featherweight division and the first from China to do so.

Xu became the third Chinese to win a world boxing title when he wrested the WBA featherweight belt off Puerto Rico's Jesus Rojas in Houston in January 2019. China's other two internationally recognized world champs are the now-retired Xiong Chaozhong (WBC minimumweight, 2012) and two-time Olympic champion Zou Shiming (WBO flyweight, 2016).