Haye vs. Valuev: “I always fight better when my opponent’s angry” – David

By Boxing News - 10/13/2009 - Comments

By Chris Williams: Heavyweight David Haye (22-1, 21 KO’s) is up to his old tricks again, making fun of his gargantuan opponent World Boxing Association heavyweight champion Nikolay Valuev in a news conference on Monday. “I’m going to get him in a position where he really wants to not only beat me but to kill me,” Haye said. Haye is counting on making the big seven foot Valuev lose control of his emotion for their November 7th fight in Nuremberg, Germany. However, it may not be possible because Valuev generally stays self contained and immune to comments made about his looks.

Valuev isn’t going to be trying to slug with Haye, at least in the early part of the fight. If anything, Valuev must realize after watching tape of Haye that the British fighter tires out rather quickly in many of his fights and the longer the fight goes the better the chance Valuev has in winning it.

haye4324459“He’s an ugly type of fighter. He [Valuev] tries to lean on you, tries to brawl and comes out with a really hairy chest that gets matted and is disgusting,” Haye said. Haye might need to get used to Valuev’s hairy chest because he’s likely to be in many a clinch with the big Russian unless Haye can knock Valuev out early or stay on the move for most of the fight.

Haye has never fought a good heavyweight and it’s unknown whether he has the ability to beat a fighter in the class of Valuev. There’s certainly better heavyweights in the division than Valuev, but Haye hasn’t fought them. Instead, Haye has fought weak opponents Monte Barrett and Tomasz Bonin. Valuev is better than them, and has a knockout victory over Barrett to prove it.

Haye isn’t a fighter that moves well. Can he move for 12 rounds? I doubt it. Most likely, Haye will move around the ring for five or six rounds, get tired and have to slug it out with Valuev. Haye doesn’t have the wheels to stay on the move for the duration of the fight and if he does attempt to do this, he’ll likely wear down like Miguel Cotto did in his fight with Antonio Margarito.

“I’ve never been a big fan of the matted hair in my face,” Haye said. The size I am. I sort of come up to his chest and apparently the word around the campfire is that he doesn’t smell too sweet.” Haye may need to clinch for his life if he’s to get out of the fight without getting knocked out. The smell of sweat may be the least of Haye’s worries if he runs out of gas or starts getting hammered by Valuev. He needs to be thinking of how he can avoid getting knocked out.

I doubt Haye’s punches will have any effect on Valuev, so he should be thinking of an alternative plan to use where he’ll be able to stay upright for the full 12 rounds. It’s been three years since Haye went 12 rounds and he did it against a weak opponent Ismail Abdoul. Valuev will be hitting Haye a lot harder than Abdoul did that’s for sure.

“I always fight better when my opponent’s angry,” Haye says. Again, that may work against fighters like Jean Marc Mormeck or Enzo Maccarinelli, but it’s doubtful that Haye will accomplish anything more than hurting Valuev’s feelings. Obviously, Valuev has had a lifetimes worth of negative things said about him, both to his face and behind his back. I’m sure he’s used to it by now.

Valuev probably is a little shocked because he hasn’t had to experience an opponent insulting his looks over and over again in the build up of past fights. Haye has no qualms about going for the gut shot. If he sees a weakness in opponent, whether it be there chin or their looks, he’s going to gleefully point it out until the fight takes place. The good thing is after the fight Haye is always a perfect gentleman and it’s like a completely different person.



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