Haye-Bellew: Talking points after Tony Bellew stopped an injured David Haye
Haye was never a quitter; but is there anyone tougher than Bellew?
Sunday 5 March 2017 20:05, UK
What did we learn about David Haye and Tony Bellew after their dramatic fight on Saturday night?
Haye was never a diva
Haye's career might have crumbled, a faulty tendon proving the Kryptonite despite the Superman torso that makes him look unstoppable. But nobody can ever suggest that he is better suited to a private yacht than a boxing ring.
The ghosts of the infamous toe injury, and more pertinently his excessive mention of it, after his defeat to Wladimir Klitschko in 2011 have heroically been expunged. The sixth round against Bellew should have been the conclusion; the injury was the perfect excuse for Haye to quit, if such a thought was somewhere inside of him. It wasn't, and it never has been.
His valiant effort to continue despite knowing his Achilles had failed him is the bravery that Haye deserves to have define his career, if it did come to a sad end on Saturday night. He never quit against Klitschko six years ago, he never quit against Bellew.
The haircuts, the yachts, and the 'celebrity mates' were always a façade. Haye adapted his game-plan by swinging the left hook (he could put weight on his left leg, but not the right) and resting on the ropes to ease pressure on his injury. Forced tactics, of course, but not the thought process of a quitter. Haye, a two-weight world champion that Britain should be proud of, has never been a quitter.
Who's tougher than Bellew?
"I'm the fiercest Rottweiler you've ever laid eyes on," he crowed afterwards. Much of Bellew is a throwback to previous generations - he confessed that he didn't look the part, and he didn't possess the skills of his opponent. Bellew's equaliser is more difficult to measure, but more effective than any attribute in the sport.
His toughness is visceral, he makes you wince behind the sofa with some of the moments that he is able to ease through. Bellew conceded afterwards that he sent his crying fiancé abroad because of her fear that his recklessness could end badly. That attitude can't be taught in even the harshest boxing gyms, and it might make the wife cry, but it also brings tears to fellow world champions.
Miami tanning or Yorkshire training?
Bellew's victory will be held up as a moral victory for those who wake up early, work hard, and get home late. Gruelling sessions in Dave Coldwell's Yorkshire gym, pounding the pavements in the winter air while most of us were still asleep, is how Bellew prepared in a textbook example of dedication. Haye's months in Miami were laughed at, and although posing on yachts was always an exaggerated image, question marks remained about his fitness.
But did Haye 'gas'? In the sixth round, before his ankle let him down, he was moving with the same rhythm as the earliest stages when he is deemed most dangerous.
Bellew, in his fervent attempt to finish his injured foe, was gasping for air in the second half of the fight - he was often guilty of ignoring his guard in favour and exposing his face as Haye desperately swung at him.
We are unlikely to see a host of British champions book tickets for the South Beach sunshine for any reason other than a holiday, but Haye's decision to prepare in a place that made him smile did not lead to his defeat.
Who next for Bellew?
Not Anthony Joshua, that's for certain. But quite incredibly, WBC cruiserweight champion Bellew is now sitting pretty in two divisions.
He labelled himself the most valuable heavyweight in the world, outside of the three champions, and he hasn't even boxed 12 rounds in the division. But could you argue? He floated the name of Deontay Wilder, the WBC title-holder from America - that would have been a ludicrous proposition six months ago, but now Bellew might hold the royal flush.
New Zealand's Joseph Parker, the WBO holder, is the third world heavyweight champion and he's been itching to join the booming British boxing scene. It's difficult to envisage Bellew fighting such huge athletes as Wilder or Parker, but he's certainly brave enough to take on the challenge.
Watch repeats of Tony Bellew's stunning win over David Haye on Sunday, March 5. Book here.
