With victory over Murat Gassiev on July 21, Oleksandr Usyk reinforced his status as the undisputed champion of the world.

It's expected that the Ukrainian is set to tempt Tony Bellew back down to the cruiserweight division, with four major belts on the line.

The southpaw is undefeated in his 15 professional fights so far and his recent exploits have done wonders for his reputation at the WBO's headquarters.

Indeed, a representative of the WBO has told talkSPORT that plans have already been approved to make him a 'super champion', a rare honour bestowed on a very select few.

“The votes have already taken place to name Usyk the WBO ‘super champion’,” a WBO insider told talkSPORT.

“He will be given a special belt.

“Based on the rules of the WBO, his promoter can request to the championship committee to name Usyk the mandatory challenger in the heavyweight division.”

That is quite correct - the regulations stipulate that 'if requested by a Super Champion, the Championship Committee may designate the Super Champion as the mandatory challenger for the immediate higher or lower division.'

So, if he wanted, Usyk is suddenly in a great position to fight Anthony Joshua.

Could Usyk vs AJ really happen? 

AJ will get in the ring with Alexander Povetkin in September but what happens next is difficult to predict, as talks with Deontay Wilder have never got over the line.

Usyk, 31, would be an interesting test for Joshua, 28. The 31-year-old is 6'3" with a reach of 78" and knockouts in 73% of his fights so far.

The world champion, on the other hand, is 6'6" with a reach of 82" and only Joseph Parker has taken him the distance.

It might seem an unexpected pairing that has seemingly come from nowhere, yet Eddie Hearn has already admitted Joshua is keeping a close eye on Usyk, who has defended his title five times.

“Joshua wants the Usyk fight," Hearn said.

“He is fascinated by that kind of thing because he wants to test himself against people who he thinks are brilliant.

"He thinks Usyk is brilliant. He is up for it.”

One has to assume that Usyk will dispense with an ageing Bellew with relative ease in a fight that would raise his profile further among British fans - and that would certainly please Hearn ahead of any potential clash with Joshua.   

Would you like to see AJ fight Usyk? Have your say in the comments.