Rugby league bombshell as NRL’s biggest man quits for new sport
Rugby league’s biggest man has turned his back on the NRL, knocking back offers from multiple clubs to pursue a new sport in a shock move.
Nelson Asofa-Solomona has turned his back on up to seven NRL clubs interested in his service, quitting the NRL to take up a full-time deal in boxing.
News.com.au can exclusively reveal the NRL’s biggest man has quit rugby league indefinitely to pursue his dream of becoming a heavyweight boxing champion.
The 115kg enforcer has also become the first off-contract player to shun the mega bucks of R360 and also the riches on offer in the English Super League.
The former Melbourne Storm forward has signed a full-time boxing deal and could earn up to $1m a year in his new sport.
Plans are already underway for a rugby league super fight with another high profile NRL behemoth.
Asofa-Solomona played 215 NRL games for the Melbourne Storm during his career, winning premierships in 2017 and 2020.
The giant front rower missed the last two NRL grand finals through suspension before being let go early from his contract with the Storm.
The 29-year-old has shown plenty of boxing potential from his early foray into the ring.
In 2023 Asofa-Solomona fought Jarrod Wallace, knocking out the former Dolphins prop in a three-round heavyweight fight.
In professional men’s boxing, anyone weighing over 90.7kg is classified as a heavyweight, so Asofa-Solomona would compete in that top weight class.
The towering Kiwi also threw hands when he came to the defence of Suliasi Vunivalu when his friend and Storm teammate was coward punched in a Bali bar in 2019.
Watch Nelson Asofa-Solomona’s Bali brawl in the video above
“We went to bar La Favela, we were having a good time like I said, there was an altercation with Suli I saw,” Asofa-Solomona said at the time.
“At that point in time I was in shock, I didn’t know what to do, we all got ushered outside.
“I was by Suli’s side, just aiding him, making sure he was OK, asking if he needed stitches and should we go back to the villa.
“Obviously things escalated between myself and a group of boys.
“Looking back at that now, I think to myself, ‘could have I went another way about it?’ Yes I could. I could have picked up Suli and got out of there.
“[But] at that point in time I felt like I had to defend myself and my teammates.”
The two-time premiership winner often found himself on the sidelines in recent seasons, with his 200cm frame and tackling brutality getting him into strife with the NRL on countless occasions.
Melbourne Storm legend Cameron Smith said Asofa-Solomona’s suspensions during recent finals series would have been “highly frustrating” for coach Craig Bellamy.
“He can change, it’s a technique thing,” Smith said on Nine’s 100% Footy in September.
“Nelson Asofa-Solomona is about seven foot tall, so it’s pretty hard to get down.
“But think back to 12 months ago, he missed the grand final because of a suspension - he got done for a shoulder charge on Lindsay Collins.
“I believe in that grand final, if Nelson was a part of that game, I think Storm win.
“He’s a huge loss. If you get Nelson on his game, he’s one of the best front-rowers in the game when he’s got his head on and is playing well. He could really break a game open and he will be sorely missed this week.
“I think it would be highly frustrating for Craig Bellamy at the moment.”
Originally published as Rugby league bombshell as NRL’s biggest man quits for new sport
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