LEE Selby’s hopes of a showdown with Carl Frampton look like they will have to be put on hold after the Welshman was ordered to defend his IBF world featherweight crown against Jonathan Barros.

St Joseph’s ace Selby had been set to face Barros in Las Vegas at the end of January but the contest was shelved just before the weigh-in because the Argentinean did not meet licensing requirements.

A devastated Selby returned home and was given special dispensation by the International Boxing Federation to fight Spaniard Andoni Gago in a non-title bout at the O2 Arena last month.

It was only this week that Selby spoke again of his wish to take on Northern Irishman Frampton, however, the chances of that happening, for now at least, appear unlikely.

The IBF say the Selby-Barros clash will go to purse bids on April 13 if no agreement between the two fighters’ camps can be reached by then.

The fight must then be staged within 90 days of the winning purse bid being announced.

Until this latest development it had seemed that Selby-Frampton could happen after the WBA ordered their super champion, Leo Santa Cruz, to face regular champion Abner Mares.

That dented Frampton’s hopes of completing a trilogy of fights against Santa Cruz, who won their second meeting in January after the former triumphed six months earlier.

So while the prospect of a third Santa Cruz-Frampton encounter was scuppered, the door appeared to be opened for a massive Celtic battle.

But the IBF say they are satisfied that Barros is ready to fight after failing a medical before the previously planned tussle with Selby in Vegas.

Meanwhile, former St Joes star Joe Cordina, who makes his pro debut in Liverpool on April 22, has been added to the undercard of Anthony Joshua’s heavyweight blockbuster with Wladimir Klitschko a week later.