by James Slater – As fans know, getting the long awaited Wladimir Klitschko-David Haye fight signed, sealed and delivered has not been easy and it sure took some time. Was the fight going to happen, we asked ourselves, and what exactly was the problem with getting the bout signed. Well, according to challenger Haye, who will of course now meet Wladimir on June 20th, the reason the fight took so long to get made was because of the simply ridiculous terms the Klitschko people tried to get him to agree to three months back..
Speaking live over the phone to Setanta Sports last night, Haye revealed how bad the current contract – the one he HAS signed – is. Haye believes the heavy price he has had to pay to ensure the fight was made goes to prove how fearful both brothers are of him, and that they have only taken the fight(s) with him because he was willing to sacrifice so much.
Haye spoke about how hugely in Klitschko’s favour the contract is.
“I’ve got to fight three Klitschkos in my next three fights,” Haye said. “I think they’ve got an uncle that does a bit of boxing! Seriously, you should have seen what they tried to make me agree to before! This was a massive compromise on my part. It was a joke what they wanted. It was ridiculous. I honestly thought it was a hidden-camera TV show.”
Under legal reasons, Haye was unable to reveal everything about the original contract, but he did speak more on the matter.
“It just goes to show me the mentality of the Klitschko boys, how much “wusses” they are,” Haye said. “They’re not warriors, they don’t believe they’re the best out there – otherwise they wouldn’t make me sign a stupid contract and make me fight them three times. If they thought they’d beat me – ok, make me give Wladimir a rematch, but now, when I beat Wladimir twice I will have to fight Vitali.
“But, ok, cool, if that’s what they want. If I hadn’t agreed to that the fight would not be happening!”
So, under the signed contract, Haye’s immediate future will be taken up by fights against the Klitschko brothers and no-one else – and, it goes without saying that all three bouts have an excellent chance of being staged in Germany. Do these demands show fear or trepidation on the part of Wladimir, Vitali and their manager? Or merely a good business brain? Haye clearly believes it’s the latter.
However, Haye said he does not think Wladimir will want anymore after June 20th.
“Once I knock out Wladimir, there’s no way in a million years he’ll want to come anywhere near me again,” Haye continued. “So then I’ll have to fight Vitali. Knocking Vitali out will take a lot, but once I do knock him out he’s finished. So I don’t think I’ll be having three fights, unless they wheel in one of their uncles.
“Most people wouldn’t accept the terms I’ve accepted, but I have – simply for boxing. I’m looking at leaving a legacy behind. I’ve never heard of it in the history of boxing, someone having to sign for all this. But if that’s the only way these chumps feel comfortable getting in the ring with me – when they know they’ll get a rematch and then the brother gets his chance – that’s what I’ve got to do.
“I’m willing to do this because I know I can beat both of them.”
It seems – going by what the challenger has had to say, anyway – that David Haye is the fighter we have to thank for saving the June 20th fight.