By James Slater: David Haye has again made it clear he WILL retire in October of this year and, while talking with Sky Sports News today, the WBA heavyweight champ has outlined the two fights he hopes to have before hanging up his gloves. Whether or not Haye’s retirement promise is a bluff intended to allow himself better negotiations for a Klitschko fight, we don’t know (some experts are convinced Haye, with potentially millions of pounds to be earned in 2012, 2013, and so on, will not retire. Others believe his promise).
But whatever the case, Haye has outlined his scheduled two-fights-and-then-out plan to Sky.
“In an ideal world and if I could get my crystal ball and change people’s opinions and minds and get Wladimir’s people to do what I want them to do, it would be Wladimir in the summer and then Vitali in the September or October,” Haye said. “ But we don’t live in an ideal world. In a realistic world I fight a mandatory challenger, whether that be [Ruslan] Chagaev or [Alexander] Povetkin, we are working on that at the moment. I can’t give you an answer at the moment as I don’t know myself.
“After that there will be a fight in September or October, against Wladimir hopefully. If he wants to do it, I’m ready to do it. Let’s get the fight on. It will be me knocking him out and taking his belts and then giving them back. There will be two more fights and that’s it.”
Fans will immediately see the problem with Haye’s “realistic” plan. The May mandatory against either Chagaev or Povetkin (likely to be Povetkin according to sources) is fine, but, as we all know, Wladimir is all but set to face Poland’s Tomasz Adamek in September, in that huge 60,000 capacity stadium. This, I fear, will prove to be a sticking point. Should Klitschko be expected to walk away from the Adamek fight so as to take care of Haye? If the Ring Magazine, IBF,WBO and IBO king opts not to do so, then Haye will not likely get a date with “Dr. Steel Hammer” this year, and will either make good with his retirement promise or not.
But why can’t Haye fight Vitali in his final bout? Assuming Vitali gets past Unbeaten Cuban Odlanier Solis in March, “Dr. Iron Fist” would, I’m sure, be willing to fight Haye (if, of course, Haye has gotten past either Chagaev or Povetkin in the meantime).
Haye sounds genuine in his “two more and that’s it” statement. Can we at least see him face one Klitschko before he walks away? Will Haye entertain the idea of going in with the rock-chinned, not at all vulnerable 39-year-old, though?