Time to make Haye
Discipline is crucial if Hayemaker is to rule the world
Last updated: 7th November 2009
Haye: upwards to glory?
WBA Heavyweight title
David Haye v Nikolai Valuev
Saturday, November 7
Live on Sky Box Office
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David Haye knows he will have turn in his most disciplined performance to date if he is to capture the world heavyweight title.
The Londoner has vowed to become the first man in 53 attempts to knock out Nikolai Valuev when they meet in Nuremberg tonight, live on Sky Box Office.
But Haye, who will weigh seven stones lighter, also knows he will need brains as well as brawn if he is to become Britain's first heavyweight world champion since Lennox Lewis ruled the roost at the start of the decade.
"I can't afford to get hit with silly shots because a little shot from him is probably harder than anything I've been hit with before," he said. "So I've got to be razor-sharp, my defence has got to be impeccable and I've got to be throwing big, hard shots to get his respect early and break him down."
Haye is a renowned puncher but has only had two fights - totalling eight rounds - as a heavyweight. He KO'd both Tomasz Bonin and Monte Barrett impressively but it is his lack of experience at this level in this division that makes this such a tough task.
As he says, he cannot afford to come charging out, although he has never been known for his cautious approach. He is no stranger to the canvas and has been put down several times at cruiserweight.
Valuev's punching power in no way reflects his sheer physical size, but Haye needs to box from a distance to avoid being dragged into a wrestling match, which would only end one way. The 22-stone champion has been schooled at using his size and weight superbly and is likely to invite Haye in close, where leaning on him for even a few rounds will take its toll.
Temptation
The challenger loves nothing more than opening up and teeing off on whoever he is facing and sooner or later the temptation to stand in front of the champion and trade is likely to be too much to resist.
Haye has been working on throwing near-blind overhead rights, the sort that worked so well for the veteran Evander Holyfield when he pushed the Russian all the way back in December. He has also been switching to southpaw in training, so the idea to confuse and bemuse the bigger man is clearly in his and trainer Adam Booth's plans.
The biggest question seems to be how long Haye can remain calm and calculated, sticking to that disciplined gameplan. But the other side of the argument suggests that if he is to rock Valuev and stamp his authority with some heavy shots, he is going to need to do it early, when he is at his most potent.
That is what makes Haye so exciting and that, plus Valuev's freakish size, has what has got everyone talking about this fight. Love or loathe the Londoner, and plenty do both, he has taken on a monumental challenge that has rightly captured the public's imagination.
But of course he could be setting himself up for a fall. Plenty of established challengers, like Holyfield, Sergey Lyakovich, Jameel McCline, John Ruiz and Larry Donald have failed to trouble the Russian down the years. Haye probably punches harder than any of them, but is lighter than all of them and is not exactly used to someone tying him up and dragging him down.
Ponderous
If he can keep clear of the obvious danger and as he has said he will, dance around Valuev dipping in and out at speed, he certainly has the skills to make the giant look silly. The one worry on that front could well be ring-rust. Since the fight with Wladimir Klitschko fell through, Haye will not have fought for 51 weeks. He says he has been training non-stop and looked in splendid shape at the weigh-in, but will surely need some time to shake off the affects of that long lay-off.
For his part Valuev is a better boxer than people give him credit for, his long jab sets things up although the punch that knocks you out is the one you never see and his sheer size dictates he is ponderous in attack. He only has one stoppage to his name in his last six outings and than came courtesy of McCline's knee collapsing back in 2007.
Also he is a favourite with fight fans in Germany who might not have adopted him as their own like they have the Klitschko brothers, but will still be baying for British blood on Saturday night. Haye is a master of marketing his fights and he has readily fanned the flames for this with a series of personal and at times, painful jibes.
Germany is a notorious place to go and get a win as well, and long before he had made himself public enemy number one, a points decision was the stuff of dreams. Only if he can build a healthy lead before the fatigue of fighting such a huge opponent catches up with him is he likely to earn any decision.
Haye has never been one to worry about judges and has only gone the distance once in 23 fights, so perhaps if anyone can afford to climb into a ring behind on the cards, he can. He also thrives on being the villain, and survived a knockdown and a volatile atmosphere in Paris to beat Jean Marc Mormeck in his own back yard.
Logic though, says Valuev is too big to dent, Germany too hard a place to win on points and Haye too inexperienced as a heavyweight to pull this off.
But logic and boxing rarely go hand-in-glove. Few would have thought that months after battering Monte Barrett - who remember was on the floor after trying to vault into the ring over the top rope - the former cruiserweight king would have first had IBF and WBO champion Wladimir Klitschko and now the WBA boss in his sights.
And Haye loves nothing more than defying logic. He and Booth are more than likely to come up with a gameplan that dispels any pre-fight theory and befuddles Valuev. Whether Haye can stick to that before the hands drop and the right hand takes on a life of its own is an entirely different matter.
Discipline will be everything on Saturday night. If he can go against his natural urge to wade in, he can out-box the bigger man and if the chance comes, he will catch him on the chin and Valuev is unlikely to have been hit as hard or as fast before.
In 265 professional rounds he has not been close to the floor, but this might be the night when the giant is felled. If that happens, David Haye will probably have done it the hard way and he will deserve his place at the very pinnacle of the sport.
You can follow the fight right here on skysports.com with our round-by-round updates from 10pm and see what happened with our in-depth report on the final bell.
