David Haye could fight Alexander Ustinov for the WBA interim heavyweight title

David Haye could be set for a shot at becoming the WBA's interim heavyweight champion with a bout against Alexander Ustinov potentially on the horizon. According to manager Vladimir Hryunov, the Russian's camp are shortly set to conduct talks with both the 'Hayemaker' and Manuel Charr after the total collapse of negotiations with Luis Ortiz.

"Alexander Ustinov has reserved the right with the WBA to hold a championship fight and I think that in the next two weeks a contract will be signed with one of the boxers holding a high position in the rankings," Hryunov recently told boxingscene.com. "This fight will be for the WBA's interim championship and there will be negotiations with the two most likely opponents who are both known boxers...David Haye and Manuel Charr."

Haye, who previously won the WBA belt by upsetting Nikolai Valuev and provided positive defences against both John Ruiz and Audley Harrison before losing it to Wladimir Klitschko, has not fought since continuing his return from a severe shoulder injury by easily stopping Arnold 'The Cobra' Gjergjaj at the O2 Arena in May.

That emphatic victory came four months after he ended a three-and-a-half year absence from the ring with a first-round knockout of Mark de Mori.

The 36-year-old was expected to face Shannon Briggs in December, yet official confirmation of that meeting it never came. The veteran American, who last month hit back at claims that he was only willing to fight on a pay-per-view channel by subsequently accusing his rival of "backing out", is now set to face Lucas Browne for the WBA's vacant regular title with the winner mandated to battle Fres Oquendo within 120 days.

Haye, who was actually due to fight Charr in 2013 before being forced to withdraw with a hand injury sustained in training, will also not be afforded the opportunity to compete for the WBA super gold with that strap seemingly set aside for a high-profile showdown between Anthony Joshua and Wladimir Klitschko in spring 2017. However, that bout is dependent upon the current IBF champion successfully negotiating his second defence against Eric Molina in Manchester on 10 December.

The Londoner, currently seventh in the WBA rankings and one spot ahead of Charr, also has a WBO title challenge to fall back on having been named as the number one contender for the winner of the forthcoming clash between Joshua's mandatory challenger Joseph Parker and Andy Ruiz. That contest is due to be held in Auckland on the same night as the Molina bout.

Hryunov further revealed that former kickboxer and mixed martial artist Ustinov, who has won 33 of 34 professional boxing matches and suffered his lone loss while trying to dethrone then IBF international and European champion Kubrat Pulev in Hamburg, will travel to either the United Kingdom or Germany depending on which prospective opponent he ends up facing.

Charr previously unsuccessfully challenged Vitali Klitschko for the WBC title and also has defeats against Alexander Povetkin, Johann Duhaupas and Mairis Briedis on his own 34-fight record. The Beirut-born Syrian-German, shot in the stomach during an altercation in Essen last year, claimed the WBA international belt in his last outing against Sefer Seferi in September.