SYDNEY, AUSTRALIA - FEBRUARY 08: Paul Gallen celebrates winning against John Hopoate during the Star of the Ring III Charity Fight Night at Hordern Pavilion on February 08, 2019 in Sydney, Australia. (Photo by Jason McCawley/Getty Images)
Former Broncos star Justin Hodges is set for a boxing match showdown with Cronulla great Paul Gallen should he defeat Darcy Lussick on Friday.
Hodges has won his first two professional boxing matches and faces Lussick, who is on debut.
“If Hodges beats Lussick, he fights Gallen, that’s how simple it is,” promoter Matt Rose told AAP.
‘We’ve actually got Gallen signed so it's a natural transition to that. “Lussick probably sets himself up for some other fights later in the year.”
Hodges added that should he prevail over Lussick on Friday night, a matchup with Gallen could be his last.
“If everything goes the way I want to on Friday night, I’ll probably only have one more,” Hodges told AAP.
“’For me it wasn’t about saving a long career.
“This was a bit of an itch that I had to scratch before I got too old and the body wouldn’t allow me to do things that I can do at the moment.
“So hopefully I’ll get through this then maybe look at Gal and that might be it.”
With his last two professional bouts lasting just 100 seconds in total, Hodges has plenty he wants to showcase on Friday night.
“My speed, my power, my footwork, my boxing IQ,” Hodges said. “I really want to showcase that I deserve to be in there, use my speed, my jab and just look for punches that are going to hurt him.
“The most lethal thing I’ve been working on in this camp is waiting for those opportunities to present themself and when he tires, just jump on him and try and get him out of there.”