Paul Gallen vs Justis Huni: NRL legend’s career could be over after sickening knockout

NRL legend Paul Gallen has won the respect of the boxing world after the full extent of his insane bravery was revealed after the fight. 

Paul Gallen was tough but Huni was too good.

Paul Gallen has been defeated by Justis Huni in an explosive bout with the Aussie heavyweight king.

The former NSW Origin captain showed remarkable courage throughout a fight dominated by his younger opponent but gave way in the 10th and final round after succumbing to a brutal barrage of punches that left him completely cooked.

Huni left Gallen looking to retreat early in the piece with a series of shots that came over the top of Gallen’s guard.

The NRL legend was forced onto the ropes, but was able to get back into the fight when Huni dropped his pace. Huni’s series of shots left Gallen “hurting”, according to Aussie legend Jeff Fenech.

“Gallen is in trouble," Main Event commentator Ben Damon said barely a minute into the contest.

Huni landed more telling shots in the second, comfortably breaching Gallen's defence while keeping the former footy star at arm's length. Both fighters were able to land punishing body shots when trading blows in close, but the weight was firmly in Huni's corner as Gallen slumped to his stool at the completion of each round.

Gallen was forced to eat his words after declaring he would "ruin Huni's Olympic dream" in the lead-up to the fight.

The 39-year-old gave a pained nod when the referee approached him in the break of the second, asking him if he was OK to continue. It was later revealed he was suffering a broken rib going with eight rounds to go - but miraculously marched on.

Paul Gallen was tough but Huni was too good.

“I want to win. I’m as competitive a person as there is. I just wanted to finish the fight,” Gallen said after the ref called time on his punishment in the 10th round following a punch that sent him crashing to the canvas.

"He knocked me down fair and square ... I think he broke my rib in the second round."

Elaborating on his rib injury, Gallen added: "I just couldn’t go forward and couldn’t move – even now I’m in a fair bit of pain.

"I just never had good movement. I was sitting still too often, and the corner was telling me what to do in between rounds, but it was clicking every time I moved.

"When I did get on the inside of him, I felt like I was going OK, but he only had to touch it – and he did that a couple of times – and he hurt me.

"When he was hitting me, he wasn’t overly hurting me or shaking me, but every time he went to the body, it killed me."

The former Sharks star said his trash talk was only to hype up the fight, praising the rising heavyweight and wishing him well in Japan.

“While he knocked me down, I think the ref stopped it early," he said. "Huni was too fast and he punched a lot harder than I expected. He was just too good, I wish him the best at the Olympics and I hope he can win a gold medal for Australia.

“All the chat before, it was just chat.”

Gallen said he’s not against fighting the 22-year-old again after his trip to Tokyo.

Reports emerged revealing Gallen negotiated for an 85 per cent stake in the total fight purse, and The Courier-Mail reported Wednesday evening the 39-year-old NRL great had almost got his way. The report reveals Gallen will take home at least $1.1 million — and his purse could soar past $1.5 million if the pay per view sales exceed expectations.

Huni showed his true class.

Huni also walks away with at least $300,000 — by far the biggest payday of his career.

The 22-year-old heavyweight champion-prospect was last month reportedly set to take home around $225,000, but the latest updates are very good news for his hip pocket.

Huni thanked Gallen for the contest and gave a sneak peek into his future after the Olympics, pledging he'd change up his style to suit the professional circuit to compete against the biggest boys in the division.

“Big shoutout to Gal, an awesome competitor. Very tough and very strong,” he said. "He’s definitely built different."

Huni admitted Gallen's headline-grabbing insults in the lead-up to the Sydney clash made it "tricky" for him to prepare.

“The build-up was good, he definitely made it tricky with his words, but we don’t let that get to us," Huni said. "We come here and we do what we need to do. I’ll hopefully make you all proud at the Olympics and bring home the gold medal.”

Huni dominated from start to finish.

How the fight played out: Round by round

Round 1 — Huni left Gallen looking to retreat with a series of shots that came over the top of Gallen’s guard. Gallen was force onto the ropes, but was able to get back into the fight when Huni dropped his pace.

Round 2 — Both fighters landed punishing body shots when trading blows in close. A quieter round, but Huni scored the more telling blows.

Round 3 — After a slow start to the round dominated by Huni landing body shots, Gallen came within one punch of collapsing. Huni left Gallen stumbling on his feet as he finally started to land his right hand combinations. Sensing Gallen’s fatigue and grogginess, Huni pressed his attack with 30 seconds left in the round and Gallen just managed to hang on. Huni’s best shots came with Gallen ducking into his mid-section.

Round 4 — Gallen’s right hand snuck through for a good shot across Huni’s chin. Huni was dominated without looking for the punch to stop the fight. After watching Huni pick Gallen apart, Aussie boxing legend Jeff Fenech said: “I can’t believe he isn’t trying to throw more.”

Round 5 — Huni stayed in his comfort zone by keeping his powerful right hand in his bag. Gallen actually landed a couple of solid shots but Huni fought back with a good combination with 15 seconds left in the round.

Round 6 — Justis Huni’s body shot barrage began to pay off with Gallen wincing and dropping his guard. Gallen stumbled back onto the ropes but kept his feet after Huni landed a heavy right hand. Gallen looked out on his feet heading into Round 7.

Round 7 — Blood began to show on Gallen’s face. The round was stopped for a second time as a result of the strapping on Huni’s glove falling loose. Huni continued to win the exchanges, but wasn't looking for the killer blow.

Round 8 — Huni landed his best inside combination of the fight with a flurry of uppercut shots. Gallen continued to press the fight to try and get inside Huni’s reach. Huni was still happy to pick his shots and let Gallen survive into the championship rounds.

Round 9 — Huni came hard to end Gallen in the final 30 seconds of the round. However, the incredibly tough NRL legend continues to show remarkable courage. Gallen’s face and torso were an ugly, blotchy red.

Round 10 — The fight was stopped mid-way through the round after Huni dropped Gallen twice in the space of a minute. Gallen fell forward out of exhaustion and Huni won via TKO.

Gallen vs Huni full fight card and results

Justis Huni defeats Paul Gallen via TKO, Round 10

Issac Hardman defeats Emmanuel Carlos, via TKO, Round 4

Andrei Mikhailovic defeats Alex Hanan via TKO, Round 2

Sam Goodman defeats Nort Beauchamp via TKO, Round 6

Jason Whateley defeats Victor Oganov via TKO, Round 4