By Ruslan Chikov

WBO world middleweight champion Dmitry Pirog has advised BoxingScene.com about the progress of the negotiations for a potential unification bout with IBF middleweight Daniel Geale of Australia. Pirog is trying to set an alternate venue in Russia, if the two sides are unable to secure the television backing of HBO or Showtime.

"We have contacted the representatives of Daniel Geale and asked them to make the fight in Russia - just in case we can't get the fight on American television. Team Geale replied that it was better to wait for a response from the television networks. Of course, I would like to hold the fight in the U.S. on Showtime or HBO, and right now we are waiting for an answer on this question. And we hope that in January they will respond positively and provide a date for the fight, and I hope that we can stage it no later than March. I'm sure it will be interesting, not only for me but also for Geale because we are pursuing the same goals - we want to get showcased on the big television networks in America. And I think this fight will be interesting to Americans," Pirog said.