Conor Benn has told rival Kell Brook to "jog on" after he demanded £10million for the pair to meet in a welterweight clash.
Benn was in talks to face the Sheffield star later this year after he recorded a dominant stoppage victory over Amir Khan on his return to the ring. Promoter Eddie Hearn revealed Brook had demanded a lucrative £10 million payday to meet Benn in an all-British showdown later this year.
However the rising star has admitted he will first be looking to secure his boxing legacy over any mega-money fights. "He was asking for £10million, I just thought, ‘Yeah alright mate good one, jog on’," Benn told Mirror Fighting . "I don’t need the payday and I don’t need to leave myself in limbo.
"The paydays are nice, most people would but I am building at this stage of my career. I'd rather world title eliminators or fights one million per cent over the big money fights. The big money fights will come in time but I am chasing legacy. It was either [Chris] Van Heerden or we wait for the Kell Brook negotiations to see what happens.
"I’m not going to waste this time by waiting for Kell Brook to see if he wants to fight Amir Khan. I am on a good trajectory and it is about securing myself as one of the most dangerous fighters in Britain which I believe I am. I also want to reach the top five in the world and that is my aim."
Benn is undefeated with 20 professional victories and blasted out former world title challenge Chris Algieri in his previous bout. The 25-year-old has also been in talks with Chris Eubank Jr over a mega-fight but that also now seems unlikely until later in his career.
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For now he will enter the ring against former world champion Van Heerden in Manchester on April 16 but has come in for criticism from the public for not facing a higher-profile name in his latest tilt.
However Benn believes British fans need to give their prospects more time to take learning fights and has pointed out Jaron Ennis' recent meeting with Van Heerden. "I’m going to get that criticism he (Ennis) is not the same name as me," he continued. "If you want to criticise me for fighting Van Heerden but this guy who you are tipping as pound-for-pound fighter it's fine for him.
"Because I am a bigger name the public are more aware. It's good enough for him if he has just fought in his 26th fight. I don’t know why the public don’t allow their prospects to have more learning fights, this is a step in the right direction. Once you cross that bridge to world level there is no coming back.
"He presents different struggles, he is a southpaw tough, durable and former world champion. As I say he presents different struggles but we need to get through this to get to world level. There is always things I am looking to pick up on from fights and then they will help me move on to bigger and better things."
