LeagueNews.co | Cooper McEnroe
Nelson Asofa-Solomona is set on dominating the NRL "and go from there" following his striking professional boxing debut against former rugby league player Jeremy Latimore.
Asofa-Solomona delivered a devastating uppercut, knocking out Latimore just 2 minutes and 22 seconds into the first round during their heavyweight match in Brisbane on Friday night.
After missing out on Melbourne's last two grand final losses due to suspension, the two-time Storm premiership winner opted to decline a lucrative $800,000-a-season contract with Parramatta-one of Latimore's previous clubs-and pursue boxing instead.
"You can't get sent off in boxing," he famously remarked when revealing his shift from NRL in November.
Competing on the undercard of Nikita Tszyu's significant bout against Michael Zerafa, Asofa-Solomona, known as "Big Nasty," quickly made an impression, although he was critical of his own performance.
At 39, Latimore was at a disadvantage, giving away 10 years and 22 kilograms to the 133kg Asofa-Solomona, who dispatched Latimore without him lasting a full round.
"Yeah, it feels great but I'm not happy with the performance, to be honest," Asofa-Solomona expressed. "I'm not happy with the way I was holding my stance and stuff like that. I was a bit loose."