Nelson Asofa-Solomona has confirmed he would be keen to fight Paul Gallen in 2026 if the former NSW Origin great decides to come out of retirement for one final bout.
The ex-Melbourne Storm enforcer said he is not calling Gallen out, but admitted he would happily step into the ring if the opportunity ever arose and thinks it would be a great bout.
“Yeah, I’d love to dance with him,” Asofa-Solomona said when asked about the prospect of facing Gallen in a report from Fox Sports.
“If he did want to come back, I know there would be a lot of hype around any fight between us, and we could both make some decent money from it,” Asofa-Solomona continued.
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Gallen, 44, recently returned to the ring to defeat Sonny Bill Williams but immediately indicated the victory would likely be the final fight of his decorated boxing career.
The Cronulla Sharks premiership winner has spent more than a decade as one of Australia’s most successful crossover fighters, headlining major events against the likes of Mark Hunt, Lucas Browne and Justis Huni.
Any bout against Asofa-Solomona would see Gallen concede significant age and weight, with ‘Big Nelson’ towering over the former Shark, but it would still loom as a major commercial event.
Before any talk of Gallen can progress, Asofa-Solomona is focused on his professional boxing debut against fellow former rugby league player Jeremy Latimore on January 16 in Brisbane.
The fight will take place on the undercard of the Nikita Tszyu versus Michael Zerafa blockbuster, giving Asofa-Solomona a high-profile entry into boxing and a major stage to showcase his transition between sports.
The former Storm prop admitted he is unsure what weight he will come in at, revealing he has not stepped on the scales since leaving the NRL as he continues to adjust to life outside rugby league.
“Last time I checked I would’ve been mid-130s, but right now it’s all about how I feel rather than numbers,” Asofa-Solomona explained.
Asofa-Solomona has already shown his power with an exhibition stoppage win over Jarrod Wallace while still at the Melbourne Storm, but insists he remains a student of the sport and is focused on learning and developing.
For now, his attention is firmly on making a successful professional debut, but if Paul Gallen ever decides he has one last fight left in him, Nelson Asofa-Solomona has made it clear he would be ready to answer the call.