By Bill Patrice Jones: On the 10 of November 2007 David ‘The Haymaker’ Haye produced one of his most memorable in ring performances knocking out WBC/WBA cruiserweight world champion Jean Marc Mormeck in round number seven. Even by that point Haye’s intentions for the future were clear, he planned to move up to heavyweight and blast away all the overweight uninspiring pretenders who made up the top ten. Even at that stage David Haye was making noise, at least in Britain if not worldwide.
The principal reason for the excitement and clamor surrounding him was simple. At that time many fans in the United States, and elsewhere, believed boxing’s glamor division was in a sorry mess. Fans all around the world became accustomed to the criticism. The same old phrases were thrown out regularly in public and on TV. ‘There’s no excitement’ ‘The fighters are out of shape’ The division is boring.’ Only with such malaise could Haye create such a storm when he decided to move up. Haye realized this and capitalized on it, never missing an opportunity to slam all of his prospective opponents. He styled himself as the man to show the world just how awful those heavyweights really were. The arrogance of Haye and his manager/trainer Adam Booth were clear for everyone to see. Following Haye’s blowout of Enzo Maccarinelli, in his last fight at cruiserweight, they took some time to size up all of the current title holders in the division on setanta sports. Haye did not praise any of the fighters he planned on meeting, he did not say he had set himself an incredible task. Rather he played on the idea that the division was weak. This trend in Haye’s self promotion has never really ceased. It is one of the main reasons he inspires such negative emotion among certain fans. Yet what is paramount is his derision of two heavyweights in particular, brothers Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko. Haye treated the Klitschkos no differently from the rest of the division. He routinely slammed them, citing Wladimir’s alleged ‘lack of heart’ as a key reason. This in short is why Haye Vs Klitschko inspires such emotion on both sides, and why it has aroused the interest of so many boxing fans around the world.
For there are those on one side of the argument who believe the heavyweight division is at one of its lowest ebbs. However good the Klitschkos may be, they only ever beat shot or untalented fighters. For these fans Haye’s success against Wladimir Klitschko will represent a sort of proof of both Klitschkos and the division’s weakness. They perceive Haye as the first talented, and dangerous, challenger to Klitschko in many years. If he can blast him away it will justify the criticism they have been heaping on Wladimir’s shoulders all this time.
Those on the other side of the argument see it very differently. Haye to them is audacity and insolence personified. Wladimir Klitschko has never received the credit he deserves, especially in America. He is one of the most naturally talented, and powerful, champions to have graced the division in years. His dominance for such a long time needs to be recognized, and praised accordingly. After all the vast majority of the criticism leveled at the Klitschko brothers, in particular Wladimir, comes from the United States. If any observer is being truly objective then they should recognize the inherent bias in the argument. The fact is Wladimir Klitschko was once hailed as the future of the division by the American network HBO, the same network which ironically refuses to air any of his fights, citing lack of interest. Wladimir Klitschko possesses a tremendous left jab, a hard accurate right cross, and an overall impressive repertoire of punches. He has learned to command his height, and use his reach, under Emmanuel Steward and seemingly gone from strength to strength. However one may rate such challengers as (Samuel Peter (twice), Chris Byrd, Sultan Ibragimov, Tony Thompson, Hasim Rahman, Ruslan Chagaev and Eddie Chambers etc) Klitschko’s sheer domination of them must be applauded. After all many of the opponents listed were themselves former champions or accomplished amateurs. Those who have believed in Wladimir Klitschko’s greatness all this time want nothing more than for him to pick apart the brash villain Haye. If only to clarify once and for all that this division is not weak, and that Klitschko has been unfairly criticized for too long.
The war of words which developed between Haye and Wladimir only added fuel to the fire. Every failure to make the super fight a reality incensed fans on both sides. We became accustomed to Haye being slammed as a ‘coward’. Why the fight failed to materialize for so long shouldn’t be dwelled upon too much. We should be thankful, in spite of all the controversy, that they have both finally put pens to paper. For what it’s worth, until very recently when the tables turned, this author suspected Haye for a long time of not wanting a Klitschko fight as much as he publicly claimed he did.
The David Haye Wladimir Klitschko fight has ignited such incredible interest and emotion not solely because of the competitive nature of the fight. There is something far more significant in terms of heavyweight history riding on its shoulders. How shall we judge this era? Perhaps more importantly, how shall history judge the Klitschkos? The Haye Klitschko bout has the power to affect those two questions in a very big way. If David Haye knocks out Wladimir Klitschko badly, and then promptly retires, with 3 of the four heavyweight belts available, it will be devastating for both the future landscape of the heavyweight division and Wladimir’s legacy. Many will read in this the proof that Wladimir was an overrated champion dominating a weak field. This author admires and respects David Haye a great deal, and believes he has a tremendous chance of causing the upset against Wladimir. However somewhere deeper this author fears the consequences of a Haye victory. Wladimir Klitschko will have rescued the integrity of the division if he dominates and knocks out David Haye, a feat he is more than capable of achieving if he fights the perfect fight.
Whatever happens when these two collide, this author anticipates a record breaking number of comments left by boxing fans on web pages in the aftermath. For the reasons stated, and perhaps many more, Haye Vs Klitschko has the power to inspire emotion. Many may say all this talk is over the top, and that Haye Vs Klitschko is simply a good intriguing fight. You might see it that way, but if anyone has followed heavyweight boxing the past few years they might recognize that to which I have been alluding. If nothing else it will be the defining heavyweight fight of this era.