Mundine turned down pleading Briggs

Besieged boxer Paul Briggs pleaded with world champion Anthony Mundine for a one-off fight night to save him from financial ruin.

But Mundine knocked him back, fearing the out-of-condition Briggs could suffer permanent injury if the pair fought.

Mundine’s manager Khoder Nasser confirmed the approach, saying Mundine feared for Briggs’ safety.

Nasser told Briggs: “You’re going to stay in retirement.

“We’ll give you money, but not to fight. If you need money just ask us.”

The revelation comes as Briggs’ trainer Billy Hussein and his adviser, former world champion Jeff Fenech, claimed the Green fight should never have taken place because it could have killed him.

“This is worse than what Trevor Chappell did when he threw the ball underarm down the pitch to win a cricket match,” Fenech said. Briggs ignored his two confidants’ advice because he was in dire financial trouble leading into the fight.

He is yet to be paid for the fight that lasted 29 seconds.

“Two weeks before the fight Jeff rang me from Las Vegas and told me to pull the kid out,” Hussein said.

Briggs, however, was willing to risk long-term injury and take the bout no one thought he could win because of his money situation.

“He (Paul) is that broke he had to ask (Green) for an advance in payment,” Hussein said.

“He has got no money. They gave him $20,000 just so he could pay his rent and look after his kids … but he is still owed $180,000.”

Hussein denied the stoush was rigged, as betting agencies across the country refused to take any more money on the morning of the fight, for fear of a first-round knock-out.

In the lead-up to the fight, Briggs sparred up to 13 fighters in preparation for the biggest fight of his career.

Fenech revealed Briggs had been knocked out by Green five-and-a-half years ago in a sparring session.

Buford Balony says:All the stuff that is written about Mundine is good for selling papers,but this goes to show you that he & not Green has the high moral ground.Green picked another easy fight with a has been while Mundine did the right thing by not fighting him.I think Mundine would easily beat him again.What do you think?