BRISBANE, Australia — Anthony Mundine may be entering Friday night’s fight at Suncorp Stadium as a rank outsider, but the Australian boxing veteran insists not even a bare-knuckled Jeff Horn would be able to overcome him.
Mundine (48-8-0) has always excelled in the trash-talking department and it was again on full display during Wednesday morning’s River City Rumble open press conference in Brisbane’s CBD. Mundine oozed confidence, talked down his rival’s accomplishments and made it clear that he’s out to burst the bubble around Horn.
“He’s a young kid, he can fight and he’s got a warrior heart, but he hasn’t got the talent that I’ve got. He hasn’t got the ability that I’ve got,” Mundine said. “[Glenn] Rushton and his team have done a good job making everyone believe the hype, but he got found out against [Terence] Crawford with levels and he’ll get found out again with me through levels.
“Just call me the dream crusher because I’m about to crush his dream. My skills are too good and you’re going to see it; he can even go in bare-knuckled if he wants. I’m better in all facets. If I’m on point and mentally and physically ready, this boy cannot beat me.”
Mundine also rubbished suggestions that at 43 years of age he is well past his prime as a professional boxer. Instead, the former NRL star believes he is in far better physical condition right now than he was earlier in his injury-plagued career, crediting his major hip surgery in 2016 as the catalyst behind his resurgence.
Anthony Mundine’s trash talk went on for a while at today’s press conference and it certainly didn’t stop when he and Jeff Horn faced off in front of fans.
“I was fighting on one leg for years and I was just scared to get surgery because I thought that would be the end. But now that I’ve got the surgery I feel a million bucks,” Mundine said. “With the Green fight I was at 80 percent [fitness], with the last fight I was 90 percent and now I’m 95 percent. I’m more dangerous now because I’m not impaired with my hip.
“You all keep talking about my age but I’m a different beast. I’m a different 43-year-old. I’m still super fit and he’ll be huffing and puffing by the end of the fight. There’s extraordinary athletes and I’m in the extraordinary bracket.
“I’ve been around the block a long time, I’ve been with the bigger punchers, the bigger men, guys that are weighing over 81kg; this kid ain’t going to beat me. I’ll back him up and beat his a– up, that’s what I’m going to do.”
Meanwhile, Horn (18-1-1) laughed off Mundine’s comments, saying he and trainer Glenn Rushton have already discussed how the fight will go down.
The Queenslander is looking to bounce back after a loss to Terence Crawford, arguably the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter, back in June. The round nine KO was the first defeat of Horn’s professional career.
“They’re pretty confident but I suppose they have to keep telling themselves that,” Horn said. “I picture both a decision and a knockout. I’ve had both dreams so I don’t know which one will come true but I like listening to Glenn, he’s normally right about my career with the Olympics, turning professional and becoming world champion. If he says I’ll stop him in the later rounds, I believe I’ll stop him in the later rounds as well.”