Chris Van Heerden inks promotional deal with Top Rank

Chris Van Heerden has signed a promotional deal with Top Rank, FightNights.com was informed Wednesday morning.

Van Heerden, who trains in Los Angeles, has not been very active in the last few years. The 31-year-old South Africa native did not box at all in 2017, other than a few highly publicized sparring sessions with former UFC titleholder Conor McGregor, who was preparing for his fight against retired American superstar Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Van Heerden (26-2-1, 12 KO's) is a former IBF international 147-pound beltholder. He lost a controversial split decision in Belgrade at the hands of Nikola Stevanovic in May 2010, while his other defeat came against current welterweight champion and elite talent Errol Spence Jr., who stopped Van Heerden in eight, one-sided rounds.

Van Heerden, who was last seen in the ring last April when he won a 10-round unanimous decision against Timo Schwarzkopf, could be in the running to face top pound-for-pound fighter Terence Crawford, Mike Alvarado, or recent T.C. victim Jose Benavidez Jr.