By Scott Gilfoid: If you listen to a lot of fans of David Haye, they like to bring up former heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield as an example of a fighter who was able to move up from the cruiserweight division and succeed as a heavyweight, capturing the IBFWBA/WBC titles. However, Holyfield doesn’t see Haye as being in a similar situation as him, saying to the BBC:

“We’re [Haye] different, I didn’t have one fight and then get my opportunity.” Holyfield, of course, is referring to Haye being given a title shot against World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Nikolay Valuev after having fought only one heavyweight fight against Monte Barrett last November.

Haye basically talked his way into not one, but several heavyweight title fights. First, Haye was supposed to fight IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko on June 20th of this year, but Haye suddenly came up with a mysterious back ailment that sprang up just weeks to go before the fight.

Wladimir then had to find a replacement opponent for that fight. Then, Haye was going to fight WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko, Wladimir’s brother, but Haye backed out on that fight for the opportunity to fight another heavyweight champion, Nikolay Valuev. “I moved up in 1988 and had six fights in two years before I was finally ranked number one and got the opportunity to fight the winner of Mike Tyson-Buster Douglas,” Holyfield said.

Indeed, before Holyfield got a chance to fight Buster Douglas in October 1990, he beat James Tillis, Pinklon Thomas, Michael Dokes, Adilson Rodrigues, Alex Stewart and Seamus McDonagh. In contrast, Haye has fought only the 38-year-old Monte Barrett before he was given a shot at a heavyweight title.

Holyfield entered the heavyweight division with a reputation for having a solid chin, a big heart and good power. With Haye, he comes into the heavyweight division with a reputation for having a weak chin and great hand speed. No one really knows whether Haye has a big heart or not, because he’s never been in a fight where he had to really got to war. I suppose the closest thing that would come to that is his fight against Jean Marc Mormeck, a fight where Haye had to get off the canvas to win.

Holyfield: When people try to compare David Haye to me, I say, ‘wait a minute, I fought six heavyweights and beat them, they didn’t make me number one contender straightaway’. I fought my way in to prove I could win the heavyweight title.” Holyfield speaks the truth.

He worked hard after he first became a heavyweight, beating some big sluggers and some talented fighters. Why didn’t Haye have to do that? Could Haye have beaten similar fighters like Holyfield if he had to? I suppose the equivalent fighters that Haye would have had to fight or people like Alexander Povetkin, Eddie Chambers, Odlanier Solis, Kevin Johnson, Samuel Peter and Denis Boytsov.

I’m just not sure Haye could beat all – or any of them – to be honest. This is why it seems so strange when Haye fans like to point out that he’ll succeed at heavyweight because Holyfield, a former cruiserweight champion like Haye, showed in the past that it could be done. Yes, Holyfield succeeded, but he had huge problems as well, losing two fights to Riddick Bowe, another one to Lennox Lewis and Michael Moorer before Holyfield started to age and slow down. Holyfield clearly had the better chin and arguably the bigger heart.

Holyfield isn’t sure whether Haye will be able to beat Valuev on November 7th, saying “David Haye only fought one fight, and it will only tell you how good he is by how well he does in the fight against Valuev. He’s a very skillful fighter, but he’s moving up to the heavyweight division and he’s fighting against a giant, a guy who’s 100lb heavier and has a huge reach advantage.” Holyfield is right. Haye is stepping into the unknown by facing Valuev. Even though Haye is the quicker, younger, stronger fighter, he’s still giving up a lot of weight, reach and height in that fight and could lose.