Anthony Joshua and Kubrat Pulev have just about three weeks left to figure out where they're going to hold their world title fight, according to Pulev's manager, Ivaylo Gotzev.
The two were originally set to square off at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on June 20, but the fight was postponed because of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to the two fighters discussing alternative options with promoter Eddie Hearn.
"Eddie has spoken to you about the Middle East, which is a great possibility," Gotzev told Sky Sports. "It makes sense, because those countries were not as hard affected and if you take the right precautions, we could really have a safe environment.
"That's something I want to emphasise, and I can't say it enough times — safety first. We don't want to take a risk against anyone's health — no way, no how."
Outside the Middle East, one of the venues that has been discussed is the Pula Arena, a Roman amphitheatre on the coast of Croatia with a capacity of 5,000 that has been used for concerts in the past.
"Croatia is one of the countries that was not hit very hard, as we know, and also with proper measurements, that could be the case where we're not exposing everybody," Gotzev said. "An open-air stadium where you could spread out the crowd a little bit makes perfect sense."
That being said, Hearn still thinks the fight would ideally take place in Britain because Joshua is British and has been vocal about wanting to fight in front of his home nation after regaining his titles in a rematch win over Andy Ruiz Jr. in Saudi Arabia back in December.
"At the moment our preference is to stage the event in the UK, but we will keep our options open in terms of alternative venues, if UK is not an option," Hearn told Sky Sports.
Gotzev said that Pulev is all for having the fight in the UK and doesn't mind giving Joshua home-field advantage.
"It was Joshua's demand, 'I want to go back home.' OK Joshua, you're the champ, we respect that, we're coming to the UK. Kubrat is coming there to kick your ass, in front of your crowd. No problem.
"They are fighters. It's one against the other. At the end of the day, the public can jump, scream and shout, but it's mano e mano in the ring, we've worked out that. To us, it didn't matter that the fight is taking place in the UK."