Paul Gallen Returns to Fight Nelson Asofa-Solomona on November 6
Paul Gallen is coming back. Not for a testimonial lap, not for a soft payday. For a fight.
The 45-year-old premiership-winning Cronulla captain will step out of boxing retirement to face former Melbourne Storm enforcer Nelson Asofa-Solomona in Sydney on Friday, November 6, in a made-for-TV collision of old bull versus young giant.
The bout, confirmed on Nine’s Today, lands just a month after Gallen publicly torched both Asofa-Solomona and promoters No Limit Boxing for leaking details of negotiations. At the time, he insisted the money wasn’t right and accused the promotion of trying to use him as a hitman on their own fighter.
He made no secret of his price point. It’s believed Gallen refused to lace the gloves again for anything less than a guaranteed $1 million, though he wouldn’t confirm the figure when pressed by nine.com.au. What he did confirm was his suspicion about No Limit’s motives.
He claimed they wanted him back for one reason: to expose their 200-centimetre Kiwi powerhouse.
“I’ll tell you why they want me to come back. They want me to come back and beat him because they know he’s shit,” Gallen said last month, lighting the fuse on what has quickly turned into a grudge match.
From favour to feud
The animosity isn’t just about money. Gallen believes this fight exists because of him — and not in the way Asofa-Solomona is telling it.
Speaking again on Today on Tuesday, the former Sharks skipper detailed how he says he helped open the door for the towering forward’s boxing career late last year, only to watch the narrative flip.
“Few different emotions in this – bit nervous, looking forward to the challenge, but a little bit disappointed in Nelson and a few things that happened late last year,” Gallen said.
He then rolled out the story.
“I saw Nelson at the Pacific final between New Zealand and Samoa, I told him No Limit had asked me to fight over in Las Vegas, and I told him I wouldn’t be taking the fight and that he should do it.
“I actually rang No Limit for him, did my best for Nelson... and my name hasn’t stopped coming out of his mouth since.
“I’m a little disappointed in that, I did everything I could to help him start his boxing career. I’m not taking credit for his career, but I did go into bat for him.
“For him to be calling me out now feels a bit disrespectful. I’m looking forward to the challenge.”
The competitive fire is still there. So are the warnings from those around him.
“There are people close to me telling me not to do it, but I’ve been competing since I was five years old. It’s just what I do, it’s what I’m used to. No one has been able to stop me yet, and I don’t think this bloke is going to be able to.
“I did help him get started... and the lack of respect he’s showing me for doing that, I think there’s no honour in what he’s done.
“You’ve asked for me to come out of retirement, called me out. You’re going to get the old bull now and the horns. I’m going to smash your face in.”
Asofa-Solomona bites back
Asofa-Solomona, appearing separately on Today, didn’t let that version of history go unchallenged. The 200-centimetre former Storm wrecking ball, now tied to a three-year deal with No Limit, flatly rejected the notion that Gallen had done anything meaningful to launch his boxing journey.
“Gallen is telling porkies (lies), he’s done absolutely nothing for my boxing career,” he said.
“I’m grateful for the opportunity, but he should be grateful that I’m giving him a nice little payday to send him away before his pension.”
The barb cut straight to the heart of the matchup: Gallen, the ageing warrior with a proven chin and deep ring experience, against a younger, far bigger man still largely untested at any serious level.
Records, reality and risk
Gallen’s boxing résumé is no novelty sideshow. The former NRL ironman has compiled a 16-2-1 professional record, with his only defeats coming against rising Australian heavyweight Justis Huni and Kris Terzievski. Both were legitimate boxing specialists, not crossover curiosities.
He even returned from an earlier retirement to fight Sonny Bill Williams in July last year, outworking the former All Black and NRL star to win on the scorecards. For a man supposedly done with the sport, he has never drifted far from the arena.
Asofa-Solomona, by contrast, stunned the NRL when he walked away from his Melbourne Storm contract last year to sign with No Limit and chase boxing full-time. He has started perfectly on paper: three fights, three knockouts.
The fine print is less impressive. His victims so far – Jeremy Latimore, Jarrod Wallace, and George Burgess – are all fellow former league players, all with limited boxing pedigree and none with any notable achievements in the ring. They were big names, not big tests.
Gallen is different. Smaller, yes. Older, by a long way. But hardened by real rounds against real heavyweights, with only one professional sporting assignment in the last four years yet a lifetime of combat behind him.
Asofa-Solomona brings youth, reach, and raw power. Gallen brings spite, experience, and a point to prove.
On November 6 in Sydney, one of them will find out if this was a payday too far — or the night the “old bull” teaches the new monster what a real fight feels like.
