the all-Australian grudge match that is Michael Zerafa versus Nikita Tszyu<\/a>.<\/p>\nDespite fears he would struggle to find an opponent in the crossover space, NAS will be welcomed to the professional ranks by another fella who made his name in rugby league \u2013 popular NRL journeyman Jeremy Latimore.<\/p>\n
While long considered one the code\u2019s good guys – and affectionately dubbed \u2018The GOAT\u2019 by fans – Latimore is said to have genuinely annoyed Asofa-Solomona during their playing careers, including with a now highly-publicised 2018 incident involving Storm skipper Cam Smith. <\/p>\n
Regardless, NAS remains so heavily favoured to win his debut there have already been whispers of him potentially squaring off next against Gallen, the man who has most recently dominated the Australian crossover boxing space.<\/p>\n
SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA – JULY 16: Paul Gallen celebrates winning against Sonny Bill Williams after the heavyweight bout at Qudos Bank Arena on July 16, 2025 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Darrian Traynor\/Getty Images)Source: Getty Images<\/p>\n
Another option would be fast-tracking the 130kg Melburnian to a national heavyweight title.<\/p>\n
Asked about a potential Gallen showdown only last week, NAS replied: \u201cObviously, right now, Gal is retired and doing his media thing.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo I\u2019m definitely not calling him out. I\u2019m not that guy.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut if he did want to come back? I know there would be a lot of hype around any fight between us.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd we could both make some decent money from it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Yet when asked this week about the possibility of coaxing Gallen, at 44, out of retirement after fighting, and beating, Sonny Bill Williams in July, Rose conceded it was unlikely his former client would bite.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd look, we\u2019ve enjoyed some great years with Gal,\u201d Rose said. \u201cAnd I can tell you that as an athlete, Paul Gallen fears absolutely no one.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut in a boxing ring these days, I just don\u2019t think he could keep up with Nelson.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think Nelson is too big, too fit.<\/p>\n
\u201cI just don\u2019t think it\u2019s something Gal could handle.\u201d<\/p>\n
Apart from standing 20cm taller than Gallen, Asofa-Solomona would also potentially outweigh him by as much as 30kg in any potential heavyweight showdown.<\/p>\n
The former New Zealand Test prop is also 15 years younger.<\/p>\n
Importantly, Rose also suggests NAS boasts the perfect frame for success as a heavyweight in the modern era.<\/p>\n
\u201cIn this age of heavyweights, Nelson Asofa-Solomona is built for it,\u201d Rose continued. \u201cAnd based on his physical attributes there really is no limit to what he can achieve.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe\u2019s got the size, the natural athleticism, all of it.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo if he also has the boxing fundamentals down … he\u2019ll be a very dangerous man.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tszyu vs Zerafa | Face Off | 25:50<\/p>\n
Pushed on a potential showdown with Gallen, Rose continued: \u201cGal\u2019s size was always his biggest detriment.<\/p>\n
\u201cHe had the ticker, the power, the fitness, everything else.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut Nelson? He\u2019s 6\u20197\u2019\u2019 and 130 kilos.<\/p>\n
\u201cPlus he\u2019s also got the footwork, the fitness, and that rugby league agility.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo if he can find the right way to unleash all that power his body possesses, good luck to anyone on the end of his punches.\u201d<\/p>\n
In fact, Rose added Asofa-Solomona\u2019s finishing ability could also see him become Australia\u2019s newest pay-per-view star.<\/p>\n
On the eve of Gallen\u2019s first boxing farewell in 2022, he revealed to Fox Sports Australia about having grossed $25 million in his three most recent years fighting.<\/p>\n
While the Cronulla premiership hero was estimated to have earned $9 million in total purse earnings, his bouts amassed almost three times that from 2020 – a period which included showdowns against the likes of Justis Huni, Mark Hunt and Lucas Browne.<\/p>\n
Gallen said that while Anthony Mundine grossed $75 million during his storied fight career, his own final three years have been worth a staggering $8.3 million annually.<\/p>\n
So what chance Big Nelson now goes and does the same?<\/p>\n
Asked if his newest heavyweight has the ability, first up, to surpass his previous $800,000-a-year NRL contract, Rose suggested it was absolutely possible.<\/p>\n
\u201cObviously, there\u2019s a lot of money in heavyweight boxing,\u201d he said. \u201cEspecially when the demand is there from people wanting to watch you fight.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo if Nelson can finish opponents, and finish them quickly, his aura grows, his fan base grows.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd it also means he can then back up quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo right now, it\u2019s all about Nelson delivering on what that size says he is capable of.\u201d<\/p>\n
Tszyu v Velazquez: Full Fight Highlights | 07:38<\/p>\n
And as for Rose\u2019s thoughts on the man opposing NAS on debut, former St George Illawarra prop Latimore?<\/p>\n
\u201cWell, I actually can\u2019t believe just how confident the GOAT is,\u201d he laughed. \u201cAnd I need to know why.<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, Jeremy isn\u2019t telling me anything.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo the only way I\u2019m going to find out is by watching him fight next week.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut the GOAT is honestly the most confident I\u2019ve ever seen anyone coming into a fight.<\/p>\n
\u201cEspecially when it looks like he should be out-gunned, even on size alone.<\/p>\n
\u201cYet Jeremy seems convinced he is going to punch holes in Nelson.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Nelson Asofa-Solomona is already being backed to finish Paul Gallen should the pair sign off on a blockbuster…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":396023,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[568],"tags":[64,63,761,762,158,85],"class_list":["post-396022","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-nrl","tag-au","tag-australia","tag-national-rugby-league","tag-nationalrugbyleague","tag-nrl","tag-sports"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396022","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=396022"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/396022\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/396023"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=396022"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=396022"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/au\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=396022"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
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