David Benavidez and Callum Smith are inching closer to getting a deal done for an October fight in the United States, Benavidez promoter Sampson Lewkowicz told The Ring on Tuesday.

Lewkowicz is targeting either Las Vegas or Dallas as locations for the fight. He is also open to the idea of Benavidez, the WBC light heavyweight champion, taking on the Liverpool’s Smith in the United Kingdom.

“It's not easy to find the right guy to fight Benavidez,” Lewkowicz told The Ring. “We’re also ready to go to England and fight Smith if the deal is right.”

Hearn acknowledged last weekend that he received an offer from PBC and the fight is currently in negotiations. The Matchroom Boxing chief added there is a good chance Smith is taking the fight.

Lewkowicz noted that Anthony Yarde, who is tied to Frank Warren, has also been in consideration for Benavidez if the Smith deal falls apart.

“Either fight is a good fight for boxing. We'll see what happens,” Lewkowicz said. “At this moment, there are two excellent challengers but it's not up to me, PBC or David Benavidez. It’s up to Eddie Hearn if he wants to make the deal. We’re one call away.”

One Benavidez opponent Lewkowicz has punted on, however, is undisputed super middleweight champion Canelo Alvarez.

“Canelo will never, ever fight Benavidez, regardless of the money,” Lewkowicz said. “You can give him whatever he wants. When you bring the contract, he won’t sign. I told my team to forget about him.”

Benavidez (30-0, 24 KOs) claimed the 175-pound WBC interim title during his division debut with a unanimous-decision win against Oleksandr Gvozdyk in June 2024.

He followed it up with a career-best performance in February, defeating David Morrell to retain the belt. Benavidez was elevated as the WBC's full belt-holder in April when Dmitry Bivol vacated the title to instead pursue a trilogy fight against Artur Beterbiev.

Smith (31-2, 22 KOs) eked out a win against the previously undefeated Joshua Buatsi in February in a slugfest to capture the WBO interim title. Smith petitioned in May for a mandatory title shot against Bivol, but the sanctioning body denied his request.