By Ryan Burton

On Tuesday, IBF welterweight king Errol Spence (22-0) held a media workout for his January 20th showdown against former champion Lamont Peterson (35-3-1).

Their fight will headline a Showtime Championship Boxing card with Robert Easter defending his IBF lightweight title against Javier Fortuna in the co-feature bout.

The 27-year-old Spence is seen as a rising star in the division. If he keeps winning he has a lot of big fights on the horizon and at the top of his wish list is an unification bout against WBC/WBA welterweight champion Keith “One Time” Thurman.

Even though that potential mega-fight looms as a possibility for late 2018 or in 2019, Spence insists his focus is on the task at hand - Peterson.

"I keep the tunnel vision because I know Lamont Peterson is a dangerous fighter and if I don't beat Lamont Peterson then I can't get those fights. It is one step at a time - if I beat Lamont Peterson then the other fights can happen so my total focus is on Lamont Peterson until that fight is over with," Peterson stated.

Thurman on the other hand doesn’t seem quite as eager to make the fight happen. He has been sidelined since May after having surgery on his elbow and is looking for more of a warm up fight before entertaining the idea of facing Spence.

The most notable name on Spence’s resume is Kell Brook. Spence stopped Brook to capture the IBF welterweight title in Brook’s backyard last May but Thurman has been hesitant to praise Spence until he gets a few more title defenses under his belt.

"I guess he called me a hot air balloon and said that he is going to burst my bubble. Keith Thurman said a lot of things that he hasn't lived up to. He calls himself 'One Time' but he hasn't been 'One Time' for a long time. I mean I don't care what Keith Thurman says until he signs a contract. It doesn't matter what he says. Everything else is irrelevant," said Spence.

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