By Jake Donovan

Carlos Takam still very much wishes to remain in the hunt to face Oleksandr Usyk.

All he asks for is a fair shake at making the fight happen.

The veteran heavyweight contender was previously scheduled to land the assignment, only for their planned May 25 clash to get scrapped after Usyk suffered a torn biceps which delayed plans for his heavyweight debut. Now healed and ready to fight, the 2012 Olympic Gold medalist for Ukraine and former World cruiserweight king is penciled in for an Oct. 12 DAZN-streamed headliner at Wintrust Arena on DePaul University campus in Chicago, Ill.

An opponent has yet to be named, as Takam went from frontrunner to unlikely candidate after having recently signed with Star Boxing just as the date—but not the opponent—was confirmed for Usyk’s return. The 38-year old is suddenly back in the conversation as one of several candidates currently under consideration.

How serious he believes Usyk (16-0, 12KOs) and his handlers are in making the fight happen is another story.

“Many months of preparation for the Usyk fight, but now the other camp seem not ready to put what it need to have it done,” Takam (36-5-1, 28KOs)—a Cameroon-born heavyweight who recently relocated from France to the greater Las Vegas area—stated through his social media channels Friday evening. “I am still more than ready to welcome him into the heavyweight division on (Oct. 12)  but only if it worth it.”

The timing of the announcement is strange, considering that—just one day prior—Usyk’s longtime promoter Alex Krassyuk mentioned Takam as a still viable candidate to land the fight, along with Russia’s Andrey Fedosov, who—as BoxingScene.com previously reported—agreed to terms within his camp and awaits a callback from Usyk and his team, which includes Krassyuk and co-promoter Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing outfit.

Somewhere in that equation resides a problem for the 14-year pro.

“Some promoters are just thinking about themselves and it’s not respectful at all for both the boxers and the boxing,” insists Takam. “I have been off the ring for almost a year now but i am more than in form and ready for the next challenge in my career.

“When a door close, another open. I have committed the next step of my career to Star Boxing Inc. Promotion with Joe DeGuardia. We promise very interesting fights soon. More information about the next fight will follow.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox