JACKSONVILLE, Fla — Shaquille O'Neal has been an NBA champion, an Olympic gold medalist, a "Saturday Night Live" host, a TV pitchman and a sheriff's deputy.
Soon he'll be able to add professional wrestler to his resume.
Shaq is scheduled to square off against Cody Rhodes in an "AEW Dynamite" match at Daily's Place in Jacksonville next month. It will be broadcast live to a nationwide audience.
All Elite Wrestling has regularly held matches at Daily's Place throughout the pandemic. The wrestling company is owned by Tony Khan, who is a co-owner of the Jacksonville Jaguars, who play their home games in the stadium attached to Daily's Place.
Tickets are available for the event, but there are not very many available. The venue seats 5,500, but capacity has been limited to 15 percent of that, so fewer than 800 fans will be able to see the match live. Tickets are $29.75-$49.75. Seats are sold in socially distanced pods and fans are required to wear face coverings.
O'Neal stands 7-foot-1 and weighed more than 300 pounds during his NBA career. He's long been a fan of professional wrestling, appearing and hosting several WWE events. The March 3 match is a tag-team contest, pitting O'Neal and Jade Cargill against Rhodes and Red Velvet. Rhodes, nicknamed "The American Nightmare," is executive vice president of AEW and a former AEW and WWE champion. It will be O'Neal's second time in the ring, following a 2016 Battle Royal match at Wrestlemania 32 in Texas.
