Briggs speaks
Posted: 27 May 2010, 18:16
Paul Briggs challenges Danny Grenn Green
Nick Walshaw From: The Daily Telegraph May 28, 2010 12:00AM
Power ... Paul Briggs. Source: The Daily Telegraph
PAUL "Hurricane" Briggs is back - determined to give Australian fight fans the one blockbuster he could never organise on The Contender.
The Daily Telegraph can reveal Briggs, the bruising light-heavyweight who retired in 2007, is on the cusp of inking "a fight Australia wants to see" against IBO world cruiserweight champion Danny Green.
While management from both camps have been working since February to pit two of the biggest punchers in this country's history, Briggs is now going public in an aggressive bid to secure the deal.
"Danny Green has never backed away from a challenge," the cult Queenslander enthused last night.
"So this is why I'm challenging him. Why I'm calling him out.
"Twice I've tried to fight Danny in the past and twice I've been denied.
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"OK, so he wasn't dodging me, he legitimately had other things on his radar. But he doesn't have anything else on right now.
"So let's get it on. Because I know there's been talk about Green and Anthony Mundine but, mate, I commentated that fight and it was ordinary. Why would people want to see a rematch? This is about two natural punchers going at it ... it's a guaranteed ball-tearer."
A champion kickboxer in his youth, Briggs twice fought Polish brawler Tomasz Adamek for the WBC light-heavyweight title in bloody, brutal encounters. And the orthodox fighter, who most recently worked as a trainer on reality TV series The Contender, said he had no concerns about taking on Green despite his three years spent outside the ring.
"I'm a natural puncher. I'll be 80 and knocking blokes out," he said.
"You look at those Adamek fights, I tortured the guy. Gave him two massive fights and he's since gone on to become a three-time world champion, a bloke who has slayed them all.
"As for getting in shape, that won't be a problem either. That's the difference between natural fighters and those who train for it. Natural fighters, guys like myself or Garth Wood, we can jump out of bed any day of the week and be ready to go.
"So I don't need any warm up fights. Don't need time to get myself organised. I can be in a car tomorrow headed for Sydney if we can get this deal across the line and do something positive for Australian fight fans."
Briggs will be in Wollongong next Wednesday night to work as a commentator for "The New Breed" fight night.
"But I'm hoping to hear from Danny much sooner," he said.
"I mean, for the past couple of years I've had people asking me to come out of retirement. Saying 'when will you fight Choc or Danny Green?
"That's why I'm doing everything in my power to get this across the line. Sure, I'm taking this fight for me, no one else. But if there's one thing I've learnt about Aussie sports fans it's that they love seeing two Aussies go hard at it. Who wouldn't?"