Errol Spence Jr
Errol Spence Jr poses a considerable threat in the welterweight division Elsa/Getty Images

American welterweight contender Errol Spence Jr is hopeful of facing Kell Brook after continuing his upward momentum with a dominant victory over Leonard Bundu in a title eliminator on Sunday night (21 August). 'The Truth', a former Olympian who stopped Chris Algieri earlier this year, secured a crushing knockout of his veteran Italian opponent in round six at Brooklyn's Ford Amphitheater to become the mandatory challenger for the IBF title.

Brook is somewhat preoccupied at the moment, with the Sheffield lad now less than three weeks away from jumping two divisions for the biggest fight of his career to date against feared Kazakh KO specialist and pound-for-pound king Gennady Golovkin in London.

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Undisputed middleweight champion Triple G's WBA Super, WBC and IBF belts will be on the line in that high-profile clash, which also offers Brook the chance to claim bragging rights over domestic rival Amir Khan following the latter's defeat to Saul "Canelo" Alvarez.

"I want a shot at Kell Brook as soon as he's done with GGG," southpaw Spence was quoted as saying by ESPN after maintaining his 100% professional record, a 21-0 tally that includes 18 KOs. "If he's not going to fight me, he needs to vacate and I'll fight somebody else. But I definitely want that IBF title shot this year."

The IBF is typically strict when it comes to enforcing these title defences, with Tyson Fury stripped of the heavyweight strap he sensationally took from Wladimir Klitschko in December 2015 after neglecting to face Vyacheslav Glazkov due to ongoing negotiations over a rematch.

Brook, who initially won his title with a majority decision triumph over Shawn Porter in August 2014, also saw off three consecutive mandatories inside a year after defeating Jo Jo Dan, Frankie Gavin and Kevin Bizier. The ease of such victories – "Special K" was not taken past six rounds in any of the three contests – has led to question marks over his ability to compete against big-name opponents, something that he will hope to put to rest against Golovkin.

In the likely event that he loses that fight, a rising star such as Spence Jr would surely represent a massive step up from those previous mandatories.