Boxing: Paul Gallen doubts Sonny Bill Williams will accept fight before he calls time
The much anticipated mega-bout between Paul Gallen and Sonny Bill Williams is running out of time to eventuate as the sun begins to set on Gallen’s impressive boxing career.
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Paul Gallen believes he will call time on his sporting career before Sonny Bill Williams agrees to step into the ring, as the league hardman turned pugilist backs Bilal Akkawy to make a world title charge.
After making his NRL debut for Cronulla in 2001, Gallen will call time on his sporting career this year but not before at least three more fights.
Gallen is contracted for two fights, but the 40-year is still eyeing a mega-bout with Williams, which has been hyped for years but has never eventuated.
But his final bout is more likely to be a rematch with Barry Hall, who takes on Williams in less than three weeks.
“Barry will fight me. If he wins against Sonny, I’m confident he will take the rematch,” Gallen said.
“On the other hand if Sonny wins I don’t know if he’ll fight me, I‘m not holding my breath.”
“I’ve got two fights on my contract but guys like Sonny Bill Williams and Barry Hall aren’t included in that contract. If I can fight two NRL players, and then everyone wants to see me fight Sonny or Barry, that would be it, yeah.”
Since stepping in the ring back in 2014, Gallen’s only loss has been to Justis Huni.
Gallen told The Daily Telegraph he was frustrated at being called out by potential opponents only for them not to follow through.
“I get frustrated when I hear about certain people wanting to fight me and then I say ‘OK, let’s fight each other’ and it never happens. They get publicity on the back of it and it never happens,” he said.
“Josh Aloiai didn’t happen before Christmas because of Covid and Manly wouldn’t let him fight in February.”
Former South Sydney enforcer Sam Burgess has been touted as a potential suitor.
“I was away on the weekend and I get asked ‘when am I going to fight Sam Burgess’ and I just say ‘when is he going to say yes’,” Gallen said.
While waiting for one last payday, Gallen has stepped into the ring to spar with heavy hitter Akkawy (20-1-1, 16KO) ahead of his comeback fight against Sebastian Singh on March 23.
“He’s got heavy fists, that was the first thing I said to my trainer at the end of the session. I honestly haven’t had too many sparring sessions where at the end of it I say ‘this bloke hits pretty hard’. When he drops down to super middleweight, he must punch hard for that weight, that‘s for sure,” Gallen said.
This will be Akkawy’s first fight since going down to John Ryder in a WBA super middleweight world fight in May 2019.
Akkawy, who is considered one of the country’s heaviest pound for pound hitters, has struggled with a hand and then a serious back injury since then.
“He fought for a world title, people forget that. In Australian boxing if someone loses people start thinking it’s the end. It shouldn’t be like that. I’m just glad to see him back and ready to get back into the ring,” Gallen said.
“He’s fought there before, there is no reason why he can’t do it again.”
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Originally published as Boxing: Paul Gallen doubts Sonny Bill Williams will accept fight before he calls time
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