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David Haye destroys Enzo Maccarinelli

Haye is heading straight to heavyweight, having already tested those waters with a brutal first round destruction of Tomasz Bonin last April. On that Wembley night, I was reminded of Lennox Lewis's annihilation of Razor Ruddock.

Adam Smith on David Haye
Quotes of the week

Friday Fight Night
David Barnes v Ted Bami
9.30pm, Fri March 14

So a rather dramatic weekend of boxing dished up some tales of the unexpected.

The biggest result came from London as David Haye demolished Enzo Maccarinelli to unify the world cruiserweight titles. After the hype and fierce debate, matters were settled quickly and clinically.

Haye seemed so relaxed as he strolled to the ring, while Maccarinelli literally sprinted in. The Welshman looked nervous and fairly stiff, while the Londoner seemed far bigger.

After a phoney war in the first, Haye connected with a couple of rights in the second, before exploding a scintillating barrage to end proceedings. It was short but dramatic.

Haye is heading straight to heavyweight, having already tested those waters with a brutal first round destruction of Tomasz Bonin last April. On that Wembley night, I was reminded of Lennox Lewis's annihilation of Razor Ruddock.

More comparisons to Lewis are now evident, such as Haye's height, reach, jab,speed, right hand and finishing instinct.

Yes, he has to put on sensible weight. Yes, he is vulnerable. But that will make him a very exciting addition to a division in dire need of a thorough overhaul.

Eloquent

Haye is eloquent, has something of a magnetic appeal, and has a great chance to follow Joe Calzaghe and Ricky Hatton as a real British star.

Haye will move up - as the heavyweight division begins to offer new openings. The Eastern European domination may be breaking at last. 'The Nigerian Nightmare' Samuel Peter promised he would knock out Oleg Maskaev in Cancun... he duly did in six rounds and is the new WBC king. A fight with either the returning Klitschko (Vitali) or the reigning one (Wladimir) is of interest.

Elsewhere, there were major upsets on both sides of the Atlantic.

Juan Diaz, the highly-rated world lightweight champion was dethroned by the long-time fringe campaigner Nate Campbell. At 36, it finally came good for the Floridian who has always looked a nearly man. Diaz was unbeaten in 33 and a star on the rise, but Campbell applied the sort of pressure that Diaz normally thrives on, and took three championship belts by decision.

Masterclass

Back home, Leicester's Rendall Munroe produced a tactical masterclass to dramatically defuse the fearsome puncher from Alicante, Kiko Martinez, on an atmospheric Friday Fight Night in Nottingham.

The European super-bantamweight champion cut a menacing figure as he prowled around the ring hunting for his 15th knockout and 18th straight win.

However, Munroe didn't stop flicking out southpaw jabs and used his fitness to brilliantly out-box the rather one-paced Martinez. Munroe seemingly put round after round in the bank, yet one judge unbelievably saw the fight as a draw. Fortunately the other two went the right way. Munroe rose in class and levels overnight.

Nottingham cult favourite Jason Booth managed to keep some normality to this topsy-turvy weekend by outclassing the brave but ultimately limited Ghanaian Lante Addy to retain his Commonwealth bantamweight crown. Great to see 'Too Smooth' still thriving.

With all that going on, it would have been easy to miss Craig Watson's Italian mission - against their unbeaten hope Daniele Petrucci. Unfortunately the Manchester southpaw was beaten in three rounds, but it's always a hard ask travelling to Europe at short notice.

Grit

Possibly the best fight of the weekend was the domestic dust-up between Dagenham's classy Kevin Mitchell and Leeds aggressor Carl Johanneson. Mitchell boxed superbly early on, but Johanneson just kept rumbling forward - so much so that in the middle rounds, it looked like he would cause the upset.

Mitchell weathered one of the week's biggest storms to come through a torrid tussle, eventually stopping Johanneson in the ninth to add the British super-featherweight title to his Commonwealth belt.

Mitchell showed flaws, but what I really liked was the grit and ambition he displayed. He obviously loves the game, and his dedication and talent saw him through a bruising battle.

The world super-featherweight title is at stake this weekend as the outstanding but underrated Mexican Juan Manuel Marquez goes back in with the Filipino superstar Manny Pacquiao.

Astonishingly, Marquez had to haul himself off the floor three times within the first round of their first meeting in May 2004. He still pushed Pacquiao to a draw.

Most feel Pacquaio will win, that he's improved over the last four years. I'm not so sure. I really like Marquez - especially the way he handled Marco Antonio Barrera. But I'm in a minority. It might depend on what the Vegas judges like.

I don't think Marquez will be so naive early and I feel he has more ring intelligence than Pacquiao. Plus the Filipino is often distracted by the fan fare around his life. Do not underestimate the quality of Juan Manuel Marquez.

Tough call

We're off to Manchester for Friday Fight Night and a good clash for the British light-welterweight title of talented but rather maverick operators.

Once upon a time, silky southpaw David Barnes looked like he could be going all the way. He came of age when he destroyed a decent James Hare - but the wheels quickly began to roll off and he hasn't looked as good since.

Ted Bami is the former European Champion and has arguably fought at a higher level. Bami is strong and puts his shots together well, but can often seem disinterested and lazy.

It's a difficult one to pick. Plenty of ability will be brought to the ring. Both careers are on the line. And it may come down to who is fresher. I tentatively go with Barnes because of his extra skill. Ricky Hatton once told me he was the best 'junior' he'd ever seen.

Finally a funny rumour hit me early this week. My friend and colleague Johnny Nelson has apparently thrown his name into the mix to fight David Haye. WHAT? Johnny is a fabulous pundit who has made the transformation from fighter to commentator very well. He might miss the limelight, but he's 41. Plus Haye will now fight at heavyweight.

So Johnny, let's enjoy watching and assessing the Hayemaker from now on. And if Glenn McCrory's reading this, the same very much applies to you, my friend!