Amir Khan's hope of regaining his world titles from Lamont Peterson were in the balance today after he was told a rematch should be back in Washington.
Khan has already insisted he will never again fight in Peterson's home city, which last month hosted the first clash between the light-welterweights.
The 25-year-old lost his WBA and IBF belts on a controversial decision influenced by local referee Joe Cooper deducting two points from the British boxer for pushing.
Late last night Khan's promoters, Golden Boy Promotions, withdrew from an IBF hearing into the original bout, which was due to have been held later today in Newark, New Jersey.
Golden Boy chief executive Richard Schaefer claimed Cooper's absence from the hearing, along with that of Michael Welsh, the WBA's ringside supervisor whose paperwork was handled by the mysterious 'man in a hat' Mustafa Ameen, would have presented "a very one-sided story" and not been "fully transparent".
Instead, Schaefer revealed that he and Khan would today meet with the American broadcaster HBO to discuss Khan's next fight. He said: "We will have something to announce soon, as it relates to a date and site."
Khan's dream that his next appearance in the ring would be against Peterson could be dashed, however, by a looming dispute over the venue.
Jeff Fried, Peterson's lawyer, confirmed: "Barry Hunter [Peterson's trainer] and I agreed that if a rematch is the direction Lamont takes, then Washington DC would be the perfect place for it."
