By Chris Williams: According to Dan Rafael of ESPN, World Boxing Association heavyweight champion David Haye (24-1, 22 KO’s) and IBF/WBO heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko (54-3, 48 KO’s) have until this Monday to let the IBF know whether they can make the fight happen or not otherwise they will move forward to have number #1 mandatory challenger Alexander Povetkin fight Klitschko instead. Adam Booth, the trainer/manager of Haye, says he’s going to speak to Haye about the terms and see if he wants to make the fight happen. If not, Haye could turn around and fight a much easier opponent in fellow Brit Audley Harrison, who is currently the European Boxing Union (EBU) heavyweight champion.
This would come to no surprise for some boxing fans, who felt that the chances of Haye taking on either of the Klitschko brothers were very slim. Many people feel that Haye will choose to milk his WBA title until the very end of his career – or until one of the WBA contenders knocks him out. At 6’3”, with a shaky chin, not much of a jab, a bad tendency to throw haymakers and questionable stamina, Haye would be in big danger of not only being dominated by Wladimir but knocked out. Haye made big money in defeated his first challenger 38-year-old John Ruiz on April 3rd.
Given the non-danger of facing another older fighter, the 38-year-old Audley Harrison rather than the huge, hard-hitting Wladimir Klitschko, there’s probably a good chance that Haye will opt to not take the fight with Klitschko and instead face Harrison. There would still be a chance that Haye could lose to a fighter like Harrison because Audley does have good power in his left hand, but not nearly the same danger as facing Wladimir, who punches incredibly hard with both hands.
Haye, without much heavyweight experience, previously had a chance to fight both Klitschko brothers but either came up lame at the last second with Wladimir or pulled out of the fight without saying a word in the case of Vitali. Given this history, there was a feeling by some that Haye would never actually agree to fight either of the Klitschko brothers unless it was his absolute last fight of his career.
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