By Sean McDaniel: Audley Harrison (27-4, 20 KO’s) thinks he has a good chance of knocking out WBA heavyweight champion David Haye (24-1, 22 KO’s) if he gets selected as an opponent for Haye. Harrison, 38, is looking like he’s gong to be next up for the 29-year-old Haye rather than the Klitschko brothers.

Although Haye was reportedly given a 50-50 deal of the purse plus no future options for a fight against IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko, Haye has still not shown a lot of interest in making the fight happen right now. Many people figure Haye will choose to run from Wladimir and will take the easy fight against Harrison instead.

The fight might not be easy for Haye if Harrison comes out punching. With his super long reach, southpaw stance and powerful left hand, Harrison could find himself in a do or die situation much like he did in his recent wins in the Prizefighter tournament and his 12th round knockout win over Michael Sportt. Obviously, the competition that Harrison faced in those bouts was much less than what Harrison would be facing against Haye.

But Harrison showed much more urgency in those fights and a willingness to use his power and size instead of holding back and looking timid all fight long. If Harrison fights the same way he did in the Prizefighter tournament, Haye could find himself in deep trouble if Harrison connects with something. This is a fight where Haye wouldn’t be able to run around on the outside and be safe from Harrison’s shots. Harrison has a huge 86” reach, longer even than the Klitschko brothers, and if he decides to spear Haye from the outside, he won’t have problems finding him.

Haye moves a lot but looks slow, like a bodybuilder trying to move. Haye mostly spins his gears when he’s moving around, needlessly tiring himself until he tries to throw a hard pot shot. If he fights a heavyweight that is good at timing his pot shots, Haye could be trouble. Harrison may not need to time Haye, because he’s going to have the reach and the power to give Haye problems but only if he uses his reach.

In an article at the Daily Star, Harrison said “David is a big puncher, there’s no doubt about that. But he is open to getting knocked out and that’s something I will exploit. There are massive world title fights out there for me. Obviously, one that I would want is that ‘Battle of Britain’ bout with Haye.”

Haye recently stopped John Ruiz by a 9th round TKO in Haye’s first defense of his WBA title in April. Excluding all the rabbit punches that Haye threw in the fight, which should have cost him multiple point deductions, Haye looked pretty good. However, he had the perfect opponent for him to look good against in the 38-year-old , weak-punching Ruiz. Haye didn’t have to worry about getting hit with hard shots from Ruiz, because he only had average power and he had a hard time landing his shots because of Haye’s movement and quicker hands.