Justis Huni may be a big betting favorite ahead of his highly anticipated heavyweight showdown with Paul Gallen, but more is happening than you think.
Gallen has been dismissed as just another football player who wants to box, but the NRL legend who has become a prize fighter has already shown that he can more than keep up in the ring.
See Paul Gallen versus Justis Huni at the Main Event, available on Foxtel and Kayo, Wednesday June 16 at 7:00 p.m. AEST. ORDER NOW>
Huni is Australia’s Olympic gold medal hope en route to Tokyo and a potential contender for the world heavyweight division, but both men go into battle on Wednesday night as the other’s biggest test yet.
The pair put a lot at stake and as boxing history has shown time and time again, especially in heavyweight division, the difference between winning and losing can often be a blow.
Huni is a big betting favorite to win at $ 1.13 while Gallen is way out at $ 5.75, while most believe it won’t go the distance.
The 22-year-old Queenslander has been dreaming of this moment since he was seven with Olympic ambitions fueling his boxing career.
Huni started his professional career looking for some big names straight away and won the 2016 World Youth Championship before turning pro and winning the Australian heavyweight title with his first fight against Faiga Opelu.
But the men Huni fought against in his professional career were nowhere near the biggest names in the sport. They finished Arsene Fosso in four rounds, Jack Maris in one and kept their distance against Christian Tsoye.
While Tsoye was able to take Huni a full 10 rounds, Huni was in control the whole time, winning all but one round.
During that fight, Huni’s trainer and father Rocki told his son to do the rounds instead of being knocked out.
Before the eighth round, Rocki said, « You look good, you look amazing. Get the rounds, that’s what we need. It doesn’t get any better than that. Whenever you want to get started, up to you when you are feel like you need more laps, buddy … I’m not giving up. »
Since then, there has been talk of whether Huni has the power to get fighters out of the ring, with Gallen having arguably the strongest chin the young man will face after being toughened in the NRL for 19 years.
And by the same token, he’s used to being in the limelight as Huni makes his Main Event debut, and that fight puts him in the public eye.
With his focus on the upcoming Olympics, which will be played by amateur rules that will earn points rather than just KOs, Huni is still focused on maximizing his success in amateur gaming.
But a victory over Gallen will pave the way for a bright future as Huni has his ultimate goal of world domination in mind.
Apart from Lucas Browne, who had his prime years behind him at the age of 42, Gallen has not fought any well-known boxers in the recent past, but instead drew against first player Barry Hall and scored a controversial point win against ex-UFC star Mark Hunt. who focused more on knocking out the highlight role than on winning.
Whether you think Huni wanted to stay in the ring as long as he did against Tsoye, he dominated the fight from start to finish and had the opportunity to adapt to different styles, keep Tsoye long, but also fight and fight in corners sometimes his way out.
Gallen has already promised tireless pressure, but Huni’s advantage is that he’s a boxer, he was bred for it and the fact is that he can’t afford to lose.
The equation for Huni is simple – win and do your best for an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo knowing that the world on the other side is at your feet, or lose and start over while you’re always the guy that is was beaten by a soccer player.
In his book, Gallen describes how he almost played for Parramatta after being an Eels junior, but then recruiting manager Noel Cleal was told, « He didn’t think there would be a clear path for me to first grade , due to the number of back rowers in the club « .
22 years later, Gallen played 349 NRL games with Cronulla, 24 Origin games for NSW and 32 games for Australia.
He brought the Sharks their first premiere post in 2016, and while winning only the only Origin series, he was captain when NSW snapped an eight-year drought against the Maroons in 2014.
There was only one small flaw in his boxing career in the form of a tie with former AFL star Barry Hall, and Gallen repeatedly shocked fans with the gloves.
While his win over Mark Hunt was controversial and fans believed Hunt beat the big shots, Gallen has surpassed the former UFC heavyweight on his superior fitness.
Then came Lucas Browne, the former WBA world champion. With a record of 31 fights, 29 wins and two defeats, Browne was considered a bridge too far for Gallen.
The fight was not rigged as some spectators suspected. It was just that, right before our eyes, Gallen had developed from a rugby league player to a bone fide prize fighter.
And that’s why the ex-soccer star is the most dangerous prospect Huni has faced so far.
Leading up to the bout, the 39 year old veteran has put his oral tournament experience with Queensland to good use over the years. Gallen talked a lot of nonsense about Huni, while his quiet, young opponent largely refrained from firing verbal grenades.
Gallen has dealt with the bright lights of the biggest stages – including the Origin series and Grand Finals – and is used to dealing with the pressure of expectation that could give him an advantage on Wednesday evening.
The same cannot be said of Huni as he steps up to his first pay-per-view.
Gallen controlled the narrative from the start, from asking Huni’s promoter Dean Lonergan to « sharpen his pencil, » which resulted in an 85-15 split for the battle fund and a seven-figure deal for Gallen.
Gallen complained about the advertising poster of the fight, turned the bird around at Huni during the magic round of the NRL and hit a « donkey » sled in the construction.
At her press conference on Monday, Gallen described Huni as a « coward » and said he would « do everything possible to make sure you don’t go to the Olympics ».
These are the mind games of an experienced competitor, and it is not until Wednesday evening in the ring that it will be decided whether the verbal barrage has hit the mark.
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