Gallen took his professional record to 9-0 with the second round stoppage in front of a sold out crowd at the Hordern Pavilion, Moore Park.

The Cronulla Sharks captain looked sharper than Hopoate from the outset.

Gallen, 37, landed one decent shot to Hopoate’s chin in the first round but looked content to attempt to out-box his opponent.

The second round was a different story. Gallen backed the 45-year-old former Manly winger into the corner before unloading a flurry of punches on an almost defenceless Hopoate.

Hopoate, a former two-time Australian heavyweight champion, fell to the canvas after being knocked senseless. Gallen showed immediate concern for Hopoate who took some time to recover.

After what was arguably Gallen’s most dominant performance of his boxing career so far, the former NSW State of Origin captain reiterated his challenge to All Blacks star Sonny Bill Williams.

In the co-main event, Rockdale’s Tim Tszyu improved his unblemished professional record to 12-0 with a second round technical knock out victory over Englishman Denton Vassell.

Tszyu was highly impressive, landing his right hand almost at will. He won the opening round with a couple of tidy combinations.

He was even more powerful and clinical in the second round, landing a number of punches before knocking down Vassell with a strong right.

The 34-year-old Vassell got back to his feet but Tszyu, son of boxing legend Kostya, completed a superb performance with a flurry of punches to end the fight.

It was an impressive display from Tszyu against Vassell, a highly-rated former Commonwealth welterweight champion.

Tszyu is now the interim World Boxing Association Oceania welterweight champion.

After stealing the show, Tszyu is now likely to pursue fights in Europe or America.