KEY POINTS:
Shane Cameron will take on Australian veteran Bob Mirovic in the main undercard of Anthony Mundine's world title fight in Sydney next month.
The 29-year-old Cameron has forged an impressive 17-0 record as a professional, including 15 knockouts, and is now 14th on the IBF world heavyweight rankings
and 17th on the WBA list.
The Mountain Warrior will put his WBA Pan African title on the line against 40-year-old Mirovic in a fight which his manager Ken Reinsfield says represents a step up in class.
Although Mirovic is much older than Cameron, he has turned in some impressive performances, including going the distance with enormous Russian heavyweight Nikolay Valuev, the WBA world champion.
"He's exactly the opposition we are looking for because he's a big, experienced and tough guy," Reinsfield said.
"It's the sort of opposition Shane will come up against more and more in the future as he goes through the ranks."
Cameron will fight again in Auckland in May and Reinsfield is also keen to line up another opponent in April.
Mirovic is a former sparring partner of Cameron's and has also beaten two of Cameron's previous opponents, Roger Izonritei and Colin Wilson.
He has a record of 25 wins (including 16 by knockout), 13 losses and two draws.
Mundine will defend his WBA super-middleweight title against Sam Soliman at the Sydney Entertainment Centre on March 7.
Fellow former rugby league player Solomon Haumono will also fight on the Mundine undercard.
Monty Betham is likely to make his professional boxing debut in Samoa at the end of March.
The former Warriors, Kiwis and Samoa hardman announced his switch to professional boxing in December and will start out in the cruiserweight division against an as-yet unnamed opponent.
"Nothing is in concrete but if everything goes to plan, it looks like Monty will be fighting in Samoa on March 31 at the 4000-seat PRG Stadium in Apia," Betham's manager Mick Watson said.
"We're still working on an opponent but from our perspective, it's exciting because Monty is Samoan and he will be boxing for Samoa.
"It's a rumble in jungle-type atmosphere and it's a big crowd to make a debut in front of. Hopefully we will be fighting quite a few fights up there."
Watson expected Betham to divide most of his early fights between Samoa and New Zealand before, if he is successful, switching his attention to Australia and the UK.
Betham, whose father Monty is a former Commonwealth champion, may have as many as six fights this year.