Anthony Mundine calls out Danny Green for trilogy decider as pair back WA’s Alex Winwood
Anthony Mundine has challenged long-time rival Danny Green to a third “exhibition” bout he says will prove he is the better boxer of the pair.
Seven years on from Danny Green’s majority decision victory over Mundine in Adelaide, which squared their head-to-head ledger at 1-all, the Sydney-based boxer still believes he won.
And both Green and Mundine have revealed both have sons who box and could set up a new generation of rivalry in the ring.
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By continuing you agree to our Terms and Privacy Policy.“I’m 2 and 0, I beat him twice,” 49-year-old Mundine said.
“He’s still saying he beat me the second time, so let’s say he beat me the second time and they gave it to him, right? So it’s 1-1. Let’s do the trilogy. Even if it’s an exhibition, I’ll still pump him.”
Green and Mundine came together in Perth on Wednesday for the first time since their 2017 fight to support WA boxer Alex Winwood for Saturday night’s bout with WBA minimumweight world champion Thai Thammanoon Niyomtrong.
“We’re not mates,” 51-year-old Green said of Mundine.
“We have an incredible amount of respect, and there’s a lot of love there. I know for a fact, if I was in trouble, Choc would be there. If he’s in trouble, I’m there, but that rivalry is real, we would punch on in the car park if we had to.
“And then I’d give him a hand. He’d give me a hand. Then we’d go have a cup of coffee and chew that fat and talk about it.”
Mundine moved up 14kg from his previous fight weight of 69kg to match Green for the catchweight limit of 83kg in their 2017 bout.
“If he wants to do it in the car park, let’s do that. I would love to have an exhibition with him. I would pump him. I would destroy the man,” Mundine said.
“The way ‘The Man’ went out was not the way I thought it would be written.
“The way they got me was the weight drain and being malnourished.
“I had no resistance. But me healthy, no one beats me.”
“It was a bit hard, being here with Danny. It was a big rivalry. I respect him, but I don’t have to like him.”
Green, who was inducted into the Australian Boxing Hall of Fame last weekend, backed himself in any car park brawl.
“I would win all day. Choc has the silky skills, but I am the junkyard dog,” Green said.
“The rivalry is real. He will go to his grave saying he is a better fighter, and I will go to my grave saying the same thing. And that’s what true competitive rivalry is.”
Mundine took the first fight with a unanimous verdict in 2006. Green, the rematch 11 years later on split points.
Those fights remain the No. 1 and 2 most watched pay per view fights in Australian boxing history.
“They still haven’t come close to it. Because there is no one who divides the public and people’s opinion like myself,” Mundine said.
“I was against the system, he was for the system. I was real man, that’s why I was so big. I stood up for everything that is wrong.”
Green said Mundine, who played NRL before turning to boxing, was “one of the greatest athletes this country’s ever had, bar none”.
“Our record of the highest pay per view will never be eclipsed in this lifetime, not anyone’s lifetime here, it just won’t be beaten. So it’s pretty special, and to have him come over here and support Alex Winwood, one of his brothers, is a huge effort,” Green said.
Mundine’s son, CJ, who is 23, and Green’s son, Archie, who is 17, have embarked on boxing careers.
“Hopefully, that should be big,” Mundine said of the possibility of their sons meeting in the ring.
“I know he’s (Green) been working Archie and CJ’s been playing footy, but he, I think he’s gonna come over to boxing and start to focus on boxing full time. And once that happens, shut the gates boys, shut the gates,” Mundine said.
Green said both youngsters were “looking for the future”.
“Who knows, the Green-Mundine rivalry could be flared up again,” Green said.
Green backed Winwood to win the world title on Saturday night.
“I am here for Alex, the young Noongar brother, the Aboriginal boy. We are all one mob across the whole nation,” Mundine said.
“I am here to support him and be a part of history and his legacy in a couple of days’ time.
“He is a boxer puncher, a boxer counterpuncher. He is similar to me.”
World title fight, Saturday, September 7: HBF Stadium. Doors open at 4pm. The undercard starts at 4.40pm with the main event scheduled for 8pm. Tickets available through Ticketmaster. The bout will be televised live on 7Plus.
Originally published as Anthony Mundine calls out Danny Green for trilogy decider as pair back WA’s Alex Winwood