Olympian Michael Conlan (16-1, 8 KOs) is still hoping to secure a rematch with WBA "regular" featherweight champion Leigh Wood.

Back in March, Conlan nearly knocked Wood out in the first round. Wood was forced to rally in the championship rounds - dropping Conlan in the eleventh and knocking him out in the twelfth and final round.

Conlan is scheduled to return to the ring in August against dangerous Miguel Marriaga.

Should he beat Marriaga, the Irish star would like Wood at the end of the year.

The WBA ordered a consolidation fight between Wood and 'super' champion Leo Santa Cruz - which may or may not happen.

“I done everything possible to make that rematch happen but the situation has come up with Santa Cruz and it looks like that fight is going to happen, it’s going to purse bids,” Conlan tells Irish-boxing.com.

“He says he wants to have bigger fights than the rematch, but the rematch is the biggest fight. I know he would be willing to less money to fight a Josh Warrington or other unification fights. That’s what was said in the immediate aftermath which is dumb in my opinion.

“We wanted the rematch, I’ve been told Eddie Hearn, Matchroom and DAZN have reached out to Top Rank about doing it in the winter. All being well with Leigh Wood will still be champion then, hopefully so, but I can understand why he wouldn’t want the rematch.

“I’ll be honest I can’t see him being champion after a Leo Santa Cruz fight. If you look at our fight and ask who did that take more out of, people will say me because I got knocked out but in terms of damage, he took way more damage than me to the head, to the body, everywhere. I’d be worried about him fighting anyone next because he took that much damage."