MIAMI—Whether it’s merely the next one or proves to be the last, Luke Campbell likes his chances in his third crack at a lightweight belt.

The 2012 Olympic Gold medalist from Hull, England has awaited marching orders for his next fight, which will come versus former two-division titlist Javier Fortuna for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) lightweight title. The two sides spent more than a month negotiating terms for the mandated clash, even going through four separate extensions before finally reaching a deal to avoid a purse bid hearing.

“We were just able to sit down and agree to terms,” Eddie Hearn, Campbell’s career-long promoter told krikya360.com. “We both wanted the fight, it took a little bit longer than we had liked to finalize, but we knew with the extra time that it would get done.

“We’re real excited, it’s a very good fight. We’re drawing up contracts now, hopefully for April and—once he’s healthy—Devin Haney can take on the winner.”

Hearn worked through the holiday and well beyond in talks with Sampson Lewkowicz, Fortuna’s promoter in hopes of bringing the fight to fruition. The two were also involved in the previously WBC-ordered fight, as then-unbeaten titlist Devin Haney (24-0, 15KOs) was due to face Dominican Republic’s Fortuna (35-2-1, 24KOs) in a mandatory title defense.

Haney was forced to withdraw from talks—and his title reign—as the Las Vegas-based rising star continues to recovery from surgery to repair his right shoulder which he injured in a 12-round win over Alfredo Santiago last November.

The sequence provided a clear path to the title for Campbell (20-3, 16KOs), who came up short in previous bids versus Jorge Linares in September 2017 and—in his most recent outing—three-division titlist and pound-for-pound entrant Vasiliy Lomachenko last August in London.

“Luke feels like he’s had a bit of a short straw in [his two chances at] a world championship,” notes Hearn. “For his first fight, he had to face Linares in [the greater Los Angeles area] on a Golden Boy Promotions show (the company being based in L.A.)—still fought very well in a very close fight.

“Then, last year, the WBC tells him he has to fight Lomachenko.”

Campbell’s lone other career loss came in his 13th pro fight, dropping a 12-round split decision to Yvan Mendy in a December 2015 clash in London which was thoroughly avenged in their September 2018 rematch.

The revenge-fueled nod over Mendy ranks among the most notable pro wins for Campbell, along with a July 2016 points victory over former titlist Argenis Mendez. A truly career-defining win still awaits the former amateur standout, one which his side is cautiously optimistic will come in his next fight.

“By the way, Fortuna is a very tough fighter,” Hearn notes of the Dominican southpaw, a former featherweight and junior lightweight titlist. “It’s a terrific fight, not easy by any means. But it’s a winnable fight for Luke Campbell.

“The feeling on our side is, third time lucky.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for krikya360.com. Twitter: @JakeNDaBox