Former WBO welterweight champion Jeff Horn is willing to to budge on one of the two negotiating points to finalize a deal to fight unbeaten rising star Tim Tszyu.
The two sides had agreed on a 60-40 split in terms of the money and they are targeting a date of April 18, in what would be the biggest clash on Australian soil in years.
But they were haggling on two items - Horn wanted a rematch clause and a ten round distance. Tszyu wanted no rematch clause and a twelve round distance.
Horn is willing to walk away from the rematch clause, but he's not going to budge on the contest being a twelve round bout - unless Tszyu's handlers offer up more money in his direction.
He is urging Tszyu to take the current terms to make the fight happen.
"If they want to make it a 12-rounder, they will have to pay me more," Horn said to WA Today. "If I was getting offered this type of fight at the stage of the career Tim is in, I’d be jumping at a 70-30 split. Even if it was 80-20, I’d be raring at the bit at trying to get it.
"I was exactly the same with Manny Pacquiao, I didn’t think about what money I was getting for that fight. I just took it. Tim Tszyu is going off his dad’s name as well. Certainly, I wouldn’t be asking for a lot more if he was in his position without his family history.
"People are excited about it. The majority of people expect me to lose, as normal. On social media, I read everywhere that they’re going for Tim, that I’m past it and that I’ll lose the fight. Hopefully I can prove them wrong once again. That’s what I’ve continually got to keep doing. I think I’ve got too much experience at this stage, it’s definitely early on in his career."