David Haye Slays the Russian Goliath
Former English cruiserweight champion David “The Hayemaker” Haye was awarded a majority decision victory over Nicolai “The Russian Bear” Valuev to capture the WBA heavyweight title Saturday night at the Nuremberg Arena in Germany.
Haye (23-1, 21 KOs) defeated the enormous Valuev (50-2, 34 KOs) despite the fact that he surrendered nearly a foot and 100 pounds to the tallest and heaviest champion in the annals of boxing history.
“Everybody thought I was crazy,” said Haye, 29, who vacated his cruiserweight titles to compete in the heavyweight division. “But I knew I could make him miss.”
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The Englishman was able to win because he held a decided speed advantage over Valuev, 36.
“The key was my speed,” said Haye, a muscular pugilist who was born in London. “People don’t realize I am very fast. And I have a powerful punch. I’m athletic, and if I wasn’t a boxer I would be playing football or rugby.”
Valuev acknowledged that Haye’s speed and elusiveness was too much for him to overcome in the ring.
“It was like a marathon for me,” said Valuev, whose only other loss came at the hands of Ruslan Chagaev. “It was like a track event. I wasn’t ready to run that much.”
Haye, who nearly became the first fighter to ever knock Valuev to the canvas during the final round, said he injured his right hand in the second round when he belted the Ruskie upside his massive melon.
“It was like punching a brick wall,” Haye said of Valuev, who stands seven-feet tall and weighed 323 pounds for this weekend’s matchup.
Haye mercilessly and cruelly mocked Valuev prior to their fight and he showed no signs whatsoever that he was intimidated by “The Russian Bear.”
“He is the ugliest thing I have ever seen,” said Haye, who is next scheduled to battle former titlist John Ruiz. “I watched Lord of the Rings and films with strange looking people, but for a human being to look like he does is pretty shocking.”
Haye has stated that he would like to box the Klitschko brothers in the near future and ultimately emulate the success of Evander Holyfield (42-10-2, 27 KOs).
Holyfield, 47, the only boxer to ever win the heavyweight title on four separate occasions, began his professional career as a cruiserweight.
Haye is a very solid pugilist who combines great quickness and stamina with surprising power.
Both Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko are also massive fighters.
However, the two Ukrainian champions possess far more boxing skills than Valuev does.
In order to defeat either Klitschko brother, Haye would need to have a near-flawless performance.
Nevertheless, considering that Wladimir and Vitali have adamantly refused to scrap one another, Haye could be the only capable fighter in the current boxing landscape to compete with the Klitschko’s.
The Haye versus Valuev contest was billed as “David and Goliath.”
If the Englishman is able to land a “Hayemaker” and trump Wladimir or Vitali, it will truly be another upset of biblical proportions.
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