By Scott Gilfoid: With David Haye (22-1, 21 KOs) looking as if he’s possibly on the verge of taking on IBF/WBC heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko at some point in 2009, I wondered what Haye might have done if he had fought one of the heavyweight divisions’ greatest knockout threats, George Foreman, in the prime of his career around the time that he took out Joe Frazier in a 2nd round TKO on January 22nd, 1973.
At the time, Foreman was only 24-years-old, weighed 217 pounds and stood at 6’3″, in other words, about roughly the same size as Haye is today. With both fighters about the same size and only a few year’s differences in their age, would Haye be able to take Foreman out?
For those who may not have seen Foreman back then, he wasn’t the fat, fun-loving persona that he developed into in the 2nd part of his boxing career in his late 30s and mid 40s. In fact, Foreman was not only lean and chiseled as a fighter, but he was also quite mean and brutal, ready to take off any opponent’s head with huge chopping right hands and hooks.
Foreman could level an opponent on the inside with uppercuts or blast them out with right hands from a distance. He also had the ability to throw uppercuts from long range and throw them with considerable power. Best of all, when he wanted to, he had one of the best jabs in all of boxing and he had the ability to control a fight with that punch alone when he so chose to do.
Up until his fight with Frazier in 1973, Foreman had fought largely no one of note, just a string of C-class fighters with the exception of George Chuvalo, whom bludgeoned into submission in a 3rd round TKO in 1970. There was nothing pretty about Foreman’s style back then, as he just over-powered his opponents and beat them down with huge clubbing shots.
His hand speed was nothing to get excited about, a lot slower than the fast hands that Haye possesses, yet with Foreman’s relentless attacking style, along with his tremendous power, he didn’t need fast hand speed to take his opponents out.
At the time that Foreman fought Frazier in 1973, George already had a 37-0 record, with a remarkable 34 knockouts. With that timeline in mind, my question is, how would Haye have done if he were to have been put in the ring with that young version of Foreman back in 1973?
I’d like to think that Haye would have been able to hold his own in there for a few rounds at least. You know, maybe come out fast looking to trade big right hands with Foreman from the opening bell the way that Haye fought Enzo Maccarinelli, except that I doubt that Foreman would have been phased in the least by Haye’s big right hand shots in the early going of the fight.
And Haye, for his part, probably would have the chin to last until the later rounds of the fight to try and tire Foreman out. I would hope that Haye would at least make it to the 2nd round like Frazier and Ken Norton both did before being taken out by Foreman’s powerful hooks and uppercuts, but I kind of doubt it. Back then, Foreman had a way of cutting off the ring on his opponents and forcing them to fight it out.
Haye obviously would come into the fight thinking defense and survivable, and would be fighting on his back foot from the opening bell. Yet, I think it would be only a matter of moments before Foreman corners Haye and forces him into an exchange early in the 1st round, nailing with one uppercut after another and badly hurting him.
Once Haye was hurt, Foreman would prove to be an excellent finisher and would likely send Haye down with a chopping right hand to the head. I can see Haye getting up, because he’s showed that he has courage when knocked down in previous fights.
However, once he’s on his feet and the action is resumed, I see Foreman blasting him with a series of hooks and uppercuts, dropping Haye for the second and final time in the 1st round. Haye would be lying there on the canvas, blood pouring from his nose and possibly his eye and his corner would be probably throwing the towel in to save him from taking further punishment.
In this case, the towel would be entirely unnecessary because Haye would be in no condition to get up after the second knockdown. It’s sad that all he would probably be able to last is one round with Foreman, but that’s nothing to be ashamed of.
Heck, Frazier and Norton only lasted two rounds a piece, and I consider both of them as better heavyweights than Haye can ever dream of being. For me, Haye getting knocked out in the 1st round by Foreman is kind of a victory for Haye, because at least he probably wouldn’t get knocked out by the first punch thrown by Foreman, and that’s not all that bad.
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