David Haye – More of the same?

By Boxing News - 02/18/2011 - Comments

Image: David Haye – More of the same?By John F. McKenna (McJack): Once again David Haye is making the claim that he wants to fight one of the Klitcshko’s before he retires by the end of the year. The “Hayemaker” will be making his mandatory challenge on May 21st against either Alexander Povetkin or Rusian Chagaev. Haye said that after his mandatory fight in May, he will have one more fight either in September or October.

Tomasz Adamek is already under contract to fight one of the Klitschko’s in September. Haye said that in an ideal world he would be facing one Klitschko then the other. He noted however that we do not live in an ideal world and that he would probably be facing Vladimir. Haye was quoted as saying “I will be knocking him out and taking his belts and then giving them back. There will be two more fights and that is it.”

We have all heard this kind of talk and bravado before from David Haye. He pulls outrageous antics like showing up at the press conference with Vlad, wearing a T-shirt depicting the severed heads and corpses of the Klitschko’s. He boasts about what he will do to Vlad and/or Vitali when he gets them into the ring. But is this like the schoolboy whistling past the graveyard to summon courage that does not exist? We have heard it all before, not once but many times.

On June 3 2009 Haye pulled out of a fight with Vladimir Klitschko which was scheduled to take place on June 20, 2009. Haye had apparently suffered a mysterious injury. 40,000 tickets had already been sold for the fight which was to be held in Germany. Then on July 23, 2009 Haye bailed out of a fight with Vitali Klitschko scheduled for September 12, 2009. Negotiations were being finalized, a TV deal was in place and a 55,000 seat stadium in Germany was secured. After this, the “Hayemaker” went missing in action and could not be reached for days. Finally after a period of time, Klitscko adviser Shelly Finkel was advised that Haye had opted to fight Nikolai Valuev. Obviously Valuev, despite his massive size, was not perceived by the Haye camp to be anywhere near the threat to Haye as either of the Klitschko’s.

British promoter Frank Warren has been openly critical of Haye and his manager/trainer Adam Booth asking why Haye would fight Harrison when he could have fought Vladimir Kltschko. Warren also stated that Booth was by far the most difficult person he had ever dealt with.

When the fight between David Haye and Vladimir Klitschko was announced for July 2, 2010 many people thought that at long last this fight was going to take place. All the details had apparently been worked out. Then Vlad announced that he was going to take on challenger Dereck Chisora, a relative neophyte, in April. Vlad’s reasoning was that he did not want to risk Haye bailing out on him again at the last minute as he had done in 2009. This would leave him in the predicament of remaining inactive for too long a period of time at this stage of his career. Vlad also made it clear that he was still on for the July 2nd fight with Haye. Both Haye and Booth were angered by Klitschko’s move, saying it would be impossible for Vlad to prepare for a fighter of the “Hayemaker’s” talent in such a short period of time. Vlad’s camp countered, by saying that he would have sufficient time to prepare for Haye. The fate of any future fight between Haye and the Klitschko’s thus remains in limbo.

A David Haye fight against either of the Klitschko’s would obviously be good for boxing, particularly the heavyweight division. Boxing needs a heavyweight title fight that will generate huge interest. In years past, it was always the heavyweight championship fights that generated the most interest in boxing by far. Going all the way back to Jack Dempsey, who generated the first million dollar gate in the roaring twenties and on through the ages, the heavyweight championship was where it was at. There was always a feeling of electricity in the air prior to and during a heavyweight championship fight. A fight involving David Haye and either of the Klitschko’s has the potential of generating the type of excitement and hype that only a heavyweight title fight can bring. It remains to be seen if it will ever happen.



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