Nelson Asofa-Solomona has brushed off Paul Gallen’s insults as “playground bullying” and declared their fight on November 6 will not go the distance.
Gallen has called his former NRL rival a “rat”, a “pig” and a “dog” in the build-up to their boxing showdown. Asofa-Solomona told Fox Sports Australia after Wednesday’s press conference that none of it had got under his skin.
Gallen v Asofa-Solomona | Friday November 6 from 7pm AEDT | Australian sporting icon and crossover boxing king Paul Gallen returns to the ring to face his biggest opponent yet, Nelson ‘Big Nasty’ Asofa-Solomona. | Order now on Kayo Sports.
“Nah, not at all. I’ve got nothing to prove to Gal,” he said. “My career is self-explanatory.
“All the name-calling, it’s all just playground bullying. I’ve got no words for him.
“He’s called me a rat, a pig and a dog. That’s no worries, bro. That’s no worries at all.”
Asofa-Solomona expects the exchanges to get more heated as fight night approaches. He was far more definite about what happens once they get in the ring.
“No, it’s definitely not going the full distance. You can guarantee that,” he said.
“Two grubs in the NRL going at it. Someone’s definitely going to get knocked out.”
Gallen has accused Asofa-Solomona of turning on him after the Sharks legend helped him get a start with No Limit, a suggestion the former Melbourne Storm enforcer does not understand.
“What’s there to turn on? We barely know each other,” he said. “All I know is that November 6 is a job to be done.”
Big Nasty has been watching Gallen’s fights and believes there are openings for some of his favourite punches.
One bout in particular has caught his eye – Gallen’s clash with Sonny Bill Williams.
“I haven’t spoken to Sonny Bill, but the best advice he can give me was his fight against Gal,” Asofa-Solomona said.
“Just watching that fight, it’s given me a little insight into what Gal’s going to bring. He was hitting him with my favourite shot, which is the uppercut.”
He said Team Ellis has him working with Australian champion Lucas Miller, whom he calls his “master sensei”.
“He’s got all the tricks of the trade, and he’s just handing them down to his little ninja turtle,” Asofa-Solomona said.
“He is 10 times the boxer that Gal is, and I am, to be honest.
“…Fans will see more boxing from me — we’ve added lots more to the toolkit and I’m a lot fitter.”
Gallen and NAS face off ahead of bout | 01:15
No Limit boss George Rose admitted he would ideally have given Asofa-Solomona more fights before matching him with someone as experienced as Gallen. But he believes the opportunity had to be taken now.
“Ideally, you’d want to see Nelson have 10 fights before he fights someone with Gallen’s record and his reputation,” Rose told Fox Sports Australia. “But timing is everything, and it has to happen now.”
Rose said Gallen’s toughness would provide the biggest test yet for NAS. He was unwilling to pick a winner.
“I think he is the toughest Australian sports person of all time,” Rose said of Gallen. “He’s going to test [Nelson] to his absolute limits, and it’s going to make for a hell of a fight. I really don’t know how it ends.”
Rose also hinted at imminent news for Tim Tszyu, saying he was working to get the former world champ back in the ring before the end of the year.
“Tim’s training. I’m really keen to get him back in the ring before the end of the year,” Rose said. “We’re working on a few things, and we’ll have some big announcements coming very soon.”
Tszyu has been linked to a December fight in Australia with WBA middleweight champion Erislandy Lara, which would give him a shot at another world title.
A long-awaited meeting with Jermell Charlo also remains on Tszyu’s wish list.
MORE BOXING NEWS:
‘Opetaia, Tszyu, Goodman…’: Gallen sends multi-million dollar message to footy fight haters
‘Only reason you brought me back’: Presser erupts as Gallen unloads after bizarre doll taunt
Gallen vows to end NAS’ boxing career | 00:45
“I’d love to share with you today what we’ve got coming, but as soon as we have it all locked in, we’ll tell everyone,” Rose said.
“We don’t like keeping secrets. We love getting it out there.”
He added that Liam Paro and Nikita Tszyu will also have huge fight news coming soon.