Haye Wants A Piece Of Wladimir Klitschko

By Jim Slattengren: As WBA/WBC cruiserweight champion David Haye prepares for this Saturday’s bout against WBO cruiserweight champion Enzo Maccarinelli (28-1, 21 KOs) at the O2 Arena (Millenium Dome), Greenwich, in London, United Kingdom, Haye is making it clear that he not only wants to move up to to the heavyweight division after his match with Maccarinelli, but that he also feels that he’ll beat WBO/IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, who is considered to be the premier heavyweight in the division by many fans and sports writers alike. In a recent interview, Haye, 27, had this to say about Klitschko’s recent fight with Sultan Ibragimov:

“Watching it, I was ashamed to be a boxer…you had a big guy of 6ft 6in, who was afraid to throw a jab at a little guy…I can’t wait to go up and knock that bum out.”

Obviously, Haye was less than impressed with Klitschko’s performance, as was many other fans who were confused why Wladimir looked so timid against the relative light-hitting Ibragimov. Haye could be only talking, trying to create press for himself by making bold statements in the press by saying he could beat what people consider to be the best heavyweight. However, knowing Haye after all this, I think he’s dead serious about believing that he can beat Klitschko. You remember, Haye has always been extremely confident about his skills, and for good reason.

Aside from an early 5th round TKO loss in his career to former cruiserweight champion Carl Thompson in September 2004, Haye has had very little trouble beating his opponents since that time. In point of fact, Haye has defeated his last 10 opponents since this lone defeat, winning by knockout on nine of those occasions. Haye’s power and speed are considered extraordinary, with many people already considering him as powerful, if not more, than Klitschko despite weighing 20-30 lbs less than the Ukrainian. First, however, Haye must get by Maccarinelli this Saturday night.

Most fans are pretty well decided, believing that Haye’s power will be the decided factor in the bout, but there are still a few stubborn fans that feel that Enzo may get a win if he can somehow last beyond the first six rounds. That, however, will be the toughest part for Maccarinelli, in that Haye applies a ton of pressure during the opening rounds of his fights, and it’s almost impossible to make it out of those rounds without hitting the canvas once or twice.

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