Boxing promoter Dean Lonergan has hit out at Junior Fa and his management, as he tries to secure a trans-Tasman 'super fight' between the Kiwi heavyweight and rising Aussie star Justis Huni.
After impressing in his first professional loss to Joseph Parker earlier this year, Fa has told Newshub he's frustrated at not being able to find another fight, as his world rankings slide.
The 31-year-old is even considering a move abroad to fight again before the end of 2021.
But Lonergan disputes Fa's claims, asserting he has an offer on the table to take on exciting heavyweight prospect Huni.
"I've been speaking with Junior Fa's people, making them aware that we want to fight them for 3-4 months now," Lonergan tells Newshub. "I put a formal offer to them a month ago.
"They came back and said 'this offer is too heavily weighted on New Zealand pay-per-view TV as an incentive, we want this amount of money guaranteed'.
"So I said, 'right, we're not going to muck around, here's the money you want, let's sign a contract'.
"I'm still waiting on them to come back and confirm it."
Lonergan also took aim at Fa's manager, Mark Keddell, claiming money appeared to be the major obstacle to getting any fight over the line.
"From what I can understand, the promoters are quite happy with where the offer is at, I think the issue is that Mark Keddell is more incentivised by money coming from New Zealand pay-per-view.
"I'm just going 'hold on, you can't have your cake and eat it too, you've got to come to the table here'.
"For Junior to come out and say that he's going to go to the US, I've offered him the equivalent money of what he got for [fighting] Joseph Parker, and if not equivalent, very close.
"He can't make this money in 10 fights in the US, fighting the bums he fought in the past, against one fight against Justis Huni - who is without doubt the best Australiasian heavyweight prospect in 100 years.
"Mark Keddell needs to get his arse into gear and get this deal done."
Keddell tells Newshub the two camps are close to an agreement, but the sticking point is a $20,000 cash advance to cover training costs.
"This is the third time we've negotiated with Dean Lonergan and nothing has ever happened," says Keddell. "We just don't want to have a camp and invest money into preparing, then have it pulled from underneath us again.
"We are happy with the fight. Huni is 5-0 and really talented, but if we win, that does nothing for us - if we lose, it hurts us massively, so the money has to be right."
Huni, 22, boasts four knockouts among those victories, with his most recent victory coming against rugby league legend Paul Gallen in June. He was widely regarded as a genuine heavyweight gold medal contender for the Tokyo Olympics until injury prevented him competing.
Fa says he's a "big fan" of Huni, who he calls a highly credible fighter he's been "watching closely" as a potential opponent, but adds previous dealings with Lonergan have left him skeptical.
"We just need a bit more commitment from their end," Fa tells Newshub. "We've been in negotiations with Dean before and things have fallen through.
"When dealing with that, you don't really hold you breath."
