Asofa-Solomona knocks out Paul Gallen in first round, then apologises for leaping into crowd

Former Melbourne Storm prop Nelson Asofa-Solomona has knocked out Paul Gallen in the first round of their heavyweight boxing bout in Sydney, then jumped from the ring into the crowd before apologising for his behaviour.

The scheduled five-round fight, the main event of a No Limit Boxing card at the TikTok Entertainment Centre in Darling Harbour, ended late in the first round on Friday night, at about 10.40pm AEDT (7.40pm AWST). Asofa-Solomona, 30, trapped the 45-year-old former NSW and Cronulla captain on the ropes and finished him with a run of uppercuts.

Gallen lay on the canvas for several minutes while medical staff treated him, and was later taken to hospital. There had been no official update on his condition as of 11.40pm AWST.

The win keeps Asofa-Solomona unbeaten as a professional. Gallen, who had described this as his retirement fight, suffered the third loss of his 20-fight professional career.

How did the fight unfold?

The size difference was obvious from the opening bell. At Thursday’s weigh-in, Gallen came in at 104.18kg and Asofa-Solomona at 137.5kg, a gap of about 33kg. Asofa-Solomona stands two metres tall, about 20cm taller than Gallen, and is 15 years younger.

Gallen survived most of the round, but the finish came quickly once it started. A straight right hand pushed him back against the ropes, and Asofa-Solomona followed with a series of uppercuts. Gallen slumped to the canvas and the referee waved the fight off.

The last of the punches appeared to land as Gallen was already going down. The result stood as a first-round knockout.

Why was the knockout described as frightening?

Gallen did not move for some time after the stoppage, and the mood in the arena changed quickly as medical staff worked on him in the ring.

Former world champion Tim Tszyu, speaking after the bout, said: “That knock out was frightening, man.” He added that he had been concerned for Gallen.

Michael Ennis, Gallen’s former Cronulla teammate, said the finish had been very hard to watch and described it as terrifying.

Gallen eventually sat up and got back to his feet. He was later shown smiling in his dressing room with his arm around his son. Neither Gallen nor his team had commented publicly on his condition by late Friday night.

Asofa-Solomona said after the fight that he hoped Gallen was all right.

What happened in the crowd?

While Gallen was still on the canvas, Asofa-Solomona climbed the corner ropes to celebrate, then jumped over them and out of the ring, running towards a spectator.

What happened next is not clear. Footage appeared to show him swing a wild punch at the spectator, while other vision suggested he pulled the punch at the last moment. It has not been confirmed whether he made contact, and there were no reports of anyone in the crowd being hurt.

The spectator was reportedly led out of the building by police, and two people were seen being led from the arena soon after the incident. No statement from NSW Police about the incident had been reported as of 11.40pm AWST.

Asofa-Solomona returned to the ring for the official announcement of the result. Vision of the knockout and the crowd incident has since been replayed widely across Australian and New Zealand media.

What has Asofa-Solomona said?

He apologised in the ring, moments after his win was confirmed. “I acted like a bloody idiot,” he said, adding that he had been caught up in the heat of the moment and should not have behaved that way.

Asked later what had set him off, he said that someone in the crowd had been making an ape gesture at him, and that as he stood on the ropes it looked like something had been thrown at him. He said he had lost his temper, and that he would take back his reaction if he could, but that the gesture was also unacceptable.

That is Asofa-Solomona’s account. The spectator has not been identified, and there has been no public account from the venue, the promoter or police of what was said or done in the crowd.

He also thanked his coach, saying he had been working tirelessly, and described it as an honour to share the ring with Gallen, whom he called the heavyweight crossover king.

How did the promoter respond?

George Rose, of No Limit Boxing, was asked about the incident on the Main Event broadcast. He said the promoter wanted its shows to be a safe, enjoyable and entertaining experience for everyone, and that people should feel safe to come along.

Rose also praised the performance, saying fans had seen the best version of Asofa-Solomona as a fighter. He did not say whether the promoter would take any action over the incident.

The fight was shown on Fox Sports and Kayo’s pay-per-view channel, Main Event, at $69.95.

How did the build-up set the tone?

The week before the fight was bitter. At Wednesday’s press conference, Asofa-Solomona brought Gallen’s wife into the exchanges, and the two traded insults.

At Thursday’s weigh-in, Asofa-Solomona claimed that people connected to Gallen, including former State of Origin teammates and work colleagues, had messaged him urging him to give Gallen a beating. He said that had been his plan all along, but would not give specifics, saying it was mostly to do with money.

He also said he wanted only a knockout and was chasing a highlight-reel finish.

Gallen said he was proud to be taking on a man so much heavier and younger, and called the fight a no-lose situation for him. He said he expected to win, despite his age, and that he was being paid well to fight.

NRL players Sam Walker, Latrell Mitchell and Cameron Munster were among those at ringside.

Who are the two fighters?

Gallen is one of rugby league’s best-known forwards. He played 348 NRL games for Cronulla between 2001 and 2019 and captained the Sharks to their first premiership, a 14-12 grand final win over Melbourne in 2016. He also captained New South Wales, including in the 2014 series win, and played Test football for Australia.

He has boxed professionally since 2014, often against fellow footballers, with wins over John Hopoate, Justin Hodges, Darcy Lussick, Ben Hannant and Junior Paulo, as well as former UFC fighter Mark Hunt and heavyweight Lucas Browne. His two previous losses came against Justis Huni, who stopped him in an Australian heavyweight title fight in 2021, and Kris Terzievski in 2022.

Gallen first retired from boxing in 2022 after a rematch win over Hodges. He returned last year to beat Sonny Bill Williams by split decision, and came into Friday’s fight with 16 wins, two losses and a draw.

Asofa-Solomona, born in Wellington, New Zealand, played 215 NRL games for Melbourne Storm from 2015 to 2025, winning premierships in 2017 and 2020, and played Test football for New Zealand. He left the Storm in October last year.

He turned professional in January this year with a first-round knockout of former NRL forward Jeremy Latimore in Brisbane, then stopped Jarrod Wallace and George Burgess. Friday’s win took his record to four wins from four fights, all inside the distance.

What else happened on the card?

Callum Peters stayed unbeaten with a unanimous points win over Juan Diego Ortiz in a middleweight bout.

Ahmad Reda beat Jake Wyllie on points in a lightweight fight, after Wyllie had come in about 2kg over the 61kg limit at the weigh-in. Reda said afterwards he believed he could beat anyone in Australia and planned to fight overseas.

Paulo Aokuso stopped Mobin Khahrazeh in the second round of their light heavyweight bout, and Blair Geraghty beat Peter Lee by split decision.

What comes next?

For Gallen, the fight was billed as his last. He had said in the lead-up that he was retiring, and he had not spoken publicly about his future after the bout.

Asofa-Solomona used his post-fight interview to call out Tommy Fury, the younger brother of former world heavyweight champion Tyson Fury. No next fight has been announced.

The questions over the crowd incident remain open. Police, the venue and the promoter had not publicly detailed what happened in the stands, and there had been no official update on Gallen’s health as of 11.40pm AWST.

VNN will update this story as more is confirmed.