By Scott Gilfoid: Former two division world champion David Haye is finally ready to get back in the ring after sitting out of action for three consecutive years. He plans on returning to the ring in 2015, and then staying active so that he can become the WBC mandatory challenger to champion Deontay Wilder in the next 12 to 18 months.
At the latest, Haye, who will soon be turning 35 in October, believes he can become Wilder’s WBC mandatory by the start of 2016. However, there are no free rides with the WBC.
If Haye is to become Wilder’s WBC mandatory, he’s going to need to face someone who is actually a good heavyweight, rather than the stiffs that Haye fought to get a title shot against former WBC heavyweight champion Nicolay Valuev back in 2009.
Haye got the title shot against Valuev after beating a number of weak fighters. Haye arguably lost the fight to Valuev, but was given a controversial 12 round majority decision. I had Valuev out-working Haye and winning a narrow decision.
“I think a great route would be to go to America and try to navigate a way to the WBC title,” Haye said via the Dailymail.co.uk. “Deontay Wilder is a very good champion and if I start fighting regularly I am probably a year or 18 months away from being in a mandatory position to fight him.”
I have strong doubts that Haye can work his way into a mandatory spot to get a title shot against Wilder. Unless the World Boxing Council gives Haye the title shot on a silver platter the way the WBA title back in 2009 by not requiring that Haye beat anyone good, I see Haye falling apart against someone like Bermane Stiverne, Mike Perez, Carlos Takam, Alexander Povetkin, Tyson Fury or Alexander Povetkin.
At this point in Haye’s career I have doubts that he can even make it through a training camp without suffering a fight-cancelling injury. In his last three training camps, Haye has suffered an injury that led to the fights not taking place. That’s age rearing its ugly head.
Haye was twice injured while getting ready for fights against Fury, and he also was injured while getting ready for a fight against Manuel Charr. None of those fights took place.
Haye hasn’t gotten any younger since then, so I don’t see him being able to make it through 3-4 training camps in order to become Wilder’s WBC mandatory. Further, I think Haye will lose to a top contender if he’s forced to fight someone good instead of a stiff to become the WBC mandatory challenger.
Wilder would likely love to face Haye, because he’s the biggest name around right now. The 6’7” Wilder would use his long jab to pick the shorter 6’2”, 210 pound Haye apart from the outside.
It would be like a rematch of the Wladimir Klitschko vs. Haye fight in my view, except I see Wilder catching Haye with a big shot and knocking him out. I don’t see Haye being able to take the huge right hand shots to the head that the steel-chinned Stiverne took last January in his 12 round unanimous decision loss to Wilder.
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