By Collie Moore: David Haye lived up to his reputation of being a heavy hitter in the Heavyweight division by scoring a KO victory in the last seconds of the fifth round against rival Derick Chisora in Upton Park in front of 30,000 fans.

Haye connected with a clean left hook to Chisora’s jaw, followed by a right as Chisora was on his way to the canvas for the first time in his career. Chisora bravely got to his feet only to be put down for a second time by an accurate barrage of punches as he failed to tie up Haye. Chisora, again bravely, fought to his feet but the referee waved it off with one second left in the fifth as Chisora looked quite dazed. While some might say the stoppage was premature, considering Chisora was facing into a break between rounds to try and recover, in reality he took heavy punches flush and the Purto Rican referee’s decision was sensible to protect his health.

The fight was an exciting one from the opening round. Haye looked focused from the moment he set foot in the ring and threw many punches in the opening bell, evidently determined to redeem himself after his underwhelming performance last year against Wladamir Klitschto. Indeed the fight had the feel of a real grudge match, with the fighters, upon not hearing the bell to end the third round, continuing to fight with Chisora worrying Haye with a hook.

In reality, the cleaner work in the fight was coming from the former two-division champion, who kept Chisora at bay with his punches. ‘Del Boy’ unsurprisingly sought to get inside Haye and walk him down, and at times looked dangerous himself when having Haye on the back foot. However his plan to pressure Haye into the later rounds was scuppered by the excellent final shots of the fifth round.

After the fight, both fighters were gracious and embraced, all animosity seemingly forgiven. Haye paid tribute to Chisora, stating how he had the best chin of any opponent he faced and that he will be world champion some day. Chisora had no complaints about the stoppage in the post-fight interview and smiled when telling Haye he owed him 20,000 pounds for the pre-match bet. In what was a nice touch, the fighters declared that that money was going to charity.

The fight, in the eyes of most fans, lived up to its hype and was probably one of the most exciting heavyweight fights in years. Chisora again showed heart in the ring and bravery to get to his feet twice, and looked to be growing slightly into the fight as it progressed. However, his skills were inferior to his counterpart. Haye showed a determination an aggression that have been lacking in the eyes of many since his move up to heavyweight. His power and speed rank among the best in the division, and attention will now inevitably turn to a potential Vitali-Haye match-up again. If that fight does occur, the Champion will present him with a tougher task and some question marks still remain over Haye’s stamina: the punch volume and work-rate shown tonight will, one feels, not be sustainable over the 12 rounds. However it is a potentially intriguing match-up for the future, and without doubt Haye proved that he can still be a force in the division.