Recently, Shaquille O’Neal showed off his impressive athletic ability after a successful dunk on Inside the NBA show. The 52-year-old will have to be in the shape of his life since he wants to box Rob Gronkowski. For this, the Lakers legend has also potentially signed a coach, that too a 4x World Heavyweight Champion. During that conversation, Shaq also looked back at his previous in-ring work, which resulted in a loss by a unanimous decision.

“I don’t wanna be big, I’m gonna get down on my knee. Look, look, he got me right there and then I came back BOP. You see it? You see it, Champ?” Shaquille O’Neal on his podcast spoke to Evander Holyfield about one of the fights from the ABC’s ‘Shaq Vs.’ series.

The fight in particular that the 4x NBA Champion was talking about was Shane Sugar Mosley. “See, right there he got me, then I got to hold him ’cause that shot kinda rock my jaw a little bit.”

The 7-foot-1 legend, after his defeat in season 1 of the series to Oscar De La Hoya, was ready for another battle. This time his opponent was 5-foot-9, tenacious Mosley. The exhibition match also had different rules, such as 2-minute rounds, with 5 rounds in total, but the last round would be only for a minute. Shaq had to wear a lighter glove, and the rest period for the competitors was 90 seconds.

Ultimately, it was the 1998 ‘Fighter of the Year’ who won via a unanimous decision. But it was close, as all three judges scored 48-47, not in favor of Shaquille O’Neal. That’s why he asked Evander Holyfield for advice on The Big Podcast. “So, like if I’m fighting a smaller guy, do I bend down to his size or do I stay up?”

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With 44 wins and 29 of them from knockouts, Holyfield certainly does not lack any experience. That’s why he explained to Shaq, “You got the arm reach. The point of the matter, he gonna miss you trying to hit you.” The Lakers legend’s potential next fight is against 6-ft-6 Rob Gronkowski. And Shaq, being 7 inches clear, there is a distinct advantage favoring the NBA icon. Still, the 4x NBA Champion has a chink in his armor.

After a handshake deal with coach Holyfield, Shaquille O’Neal stated, “Well one thing though I can’t run.” One might think, after the dunk, he would have no issues, but there is one: His “hips.” But the boxing legend gave him confidence that during the training routine, running could be swapped with cycling.

So Shaquille O’Neal quickly issued a challenge to Gronk. After all, there is $12 million on the line, and more importantly for the Lakers legend, it’s the pending zero in his win column.