George Kambosos v Devin Haney boxing undercard: Lucas Browne v Junior Fa preview

Former world heavyweight champ Lucas Browne reveals how he has had to salvage his boxing career in the wake of a 115-second disaster against former NRL great Paul Gallen.

Lucas Browne admits he will never truly come to terms with his shock loss to NRL legend Paul Gallen.

It is just over a year since ‘Big Daddy’ suffered the mother of all upsets to Gallen. It was the fight that could have reignited Browne’s career, reapplied some polish to a profile tainted by two doping scandals and propelled him to another bumper payday.

Instead, while Gallen walked away with a life-changing $1.2 million, Browne received $100,000 for the 115-second debacle that saw the 116kg hulk stopped by the footballer-turned-boxer in the first round.

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As a former WBA heavyweight king who shocked the boxing world with his epic defeat of Ruslan Chagaev in 2016, you could be forgiven for thinking Big Daddy is living on Easy Street, rolling in the millions.

The truth is Browne ain’t broke, but he’s not far from it.

“I’ve had big fights, big pay days, but no way in hell am I a millionaire,” he says with a chuckle.

Lucas Browne has been sparring with Justis Huni before this fight.

It is why, just turned 43, when most pugilists are finally KO’d by Father Time, Browne is still punching on.

This Sunday, he is back again, this time on the undercard of the George Kambosos-Devin Haney world-title blockbuster for his clash with 196cm Kiwi Junior Fa (19-1, 10KO), whose only career loss was against Joseph Parker.

Two belts are on the line: the IBF International and WBA Oceania heavyweight straps. The outcome will determine if Browne lives on the breadline for another 12 months.

“I’m not in debt, but I don’t live a lavish lifestyle,” said Browne, who has won 30 of his 33 pro fights, 26 by KO, inflicted by his granite-infused right hand.

“Covid has ruined things for a lot of people, it’s probably cost me around $350,000 which would have been my retirement.

“This fight (against Fa) will get me $75,000, which is great.

“If I win this fight, then suddenly I can make some decent money in the UK, America or overseas.

“If not, I go back to $5000 pay days in local fights, so this means a lot to me in more ways than one.”

Based in Perth, Browne kept his career alive with a seventh-round knockout of ex-Australian heavyweight champ Faiga Opelu last December, but his previous capitulation against Gallen is a wound that hasn’t quite healed.

While his total focus is on Fa this weekend, Browne admits he would relish a rematch with Gallen. He wants a chance to right some wrongs – and pocket some big bucks – but he accepts Gallen is nobody’s fool.

“I would love to fight Paul Gallen one more time,” he says.

“There’s some unfinished business there. I’ve asked Gallen a couple of times for a rematch, but he says no every single time.

“The thing that shits me a little is that I got paid $100,000 for that fight, while Gallen got $1.2 million. My career earnings don’t add up to $1 million and I’ve been doing this for more than 10 years, so that’s a slight pet peeve.”

Paul Gallen delivered a dominant win over Browne in April 2021.

The first round knockout that shocked boxing.

Not that Browne is solely motivated by money. The six-foot-five monster still lives for the high-octane combat of the fight game. He knows the curtain is closing on a chequered career that briefly netted a world title, but Big Daddy still dares to dream of dropping Fa in a moment of money-making magic at Marvel Stadium.

“This event is massive for Australian boxing and I’m a part of it,” he says.

“This is one of the biggest tests of my career, no doubt.

“I’ve studied Fa. He is a good boxer, so fitness is the key for me. If I give him a taste of my right hand early on, he will think, ‘I don’t want to be a part of this’.

“I’m at the point where I’m 43, but the passion is still there. I really don’t give a f*** what people think of me. I just love the sport. I have three or four fights left and I want to make a full statement on my career.

“I still have time to solidify myself as one of the best heavyweight boxers to come out of Australia. I want to go out with a bang.”