FightFranchise.com | David Haye Interview

David Haye is a former cruiserweight world champion who unified the division, including beating Jean-Marc Mormeck in Paris. “The Hayemaker” recently stepped up to Heavyweight, in his quest to fulfil a lifelong dream of becoming the best Heavyweight fighter in the world.

David is looking to bring excitement to a division which is seen as stagnant, and “The Hayemaker” certainly brings excitement to the table with 22 wins, 21 inside the distance.

His 1st fight was against American Monte Barrett and he won in style sending Barrett to the canvas numerous times before finishing his opponent in the 5th round.

The question is whether Haye can compete and beat the best fighters the in the Heavyweight divison. And the 1st step is on the 7th November when he challenges giant Nikolai Valuev for his WBA Heavyweight title. The big question is can a fighter with an almost perfect knock out ratio, KO a fighter who has never been sent to the canvas in over 50 fights.

Fight Franchise’s Lee Collier got to meet David Haye and see him in a media workout at Ricky Hattons new gym in Hyde.

FF: Valuev has been described as a freak of nature, how do you prepare for someone configured like no one else in boxing?

DH: There’s not too much you can do physically, as there are not many guys out their standing at 7 foot 2 in boxing. It’s more of a mental thing, you’ve got to be prepared mentally. By the time I step into the ring it will be the first time I have actually encountered someone that size, but I am good at adjusting in the ring, good at figuring people out and I feel I have got the amateur pedigree and have fought better opponents in terms of fighters who have thrown more punches at me. I was the Crusierweight world champion and I unified the division, and I feel I have the technical advantage that, in my opinion, will make up for the physical sheer size, 24 stone, the 8th wonder of the world. I reckon I can break him down and knock him out.

FF: How difficult was it coming so close to the fight with WladimirKlitschko, to having to settle down and start over again?

DH: It’s annoying really, normally you have a big fight and the training and all the hard work you do was for a reason. You can then chill out, but this time there was no fight, there was no crescendo so it feels like I have been on 1 big training session. I took a bit of time out, I didn’t want to do too much training, but I feel ready now to push myself in training.

FF: This fight is intriguing, your 6 foot 3, he’s almost a foot taller and 8 stone heavier. Never before in the amateurs or pros have you faced someone so big?

DH: I have met Shaquille O’Neal (American basketball player) once and he’s 7 foot 1 and I couldn’t believe how big he was. Then theirs big show, the WWE wrestler, and then Valuev and he is taller than the other two. It will be interesting, I don’t feel there is anything he can do, I refuse to let him impose his size, strength and weight on me. I’ll go in and use my silky skills, break him down, break his heart, make him realise he is in the ring with someone he can’t lay a glove on. Then I’ll unload the bombs and he’ll think about hitting the deck.

FF: This is what you’ve wanted since you stepped up to the Heavyweight division, you knew you were going to take on the bigger guys, and you said you didn’t want to get clocked by them, but Valuev is not known for his huge punch despite his size?

DH: He’s the kind of guy who wears you down and breaks you down. He has a long reach and anyone who weighs that much and uses his body weight behind a punch will make you know about it, but he’s not known as a 1 punch concussive KO specialist. But he has a 75% KO ratio, and has fair power, more than I have been used to in my career. People who watch it on sky box Office will get a good Saturday night, something different. Can David topple goliath, I think he can and I am going to be the 1st British Heavyweight champion since Lennox Lewis.

FF: David, you have suffered 1st hand from the problems inflicted on the media by the recession, how important is this fight for British boxing aswell as yourself?

DH: I feel it’s very important, the Heavyweight championship of the world, it doesn’t come any bigger than that in sport. Someone as big as Valuev captures the public’s imagination, and if there’s ever a fight going to sell and excite the people this is it. I’ve been known as an exciting fighter, with 21 knockouts out of 22 victories so I believe I am bringing to the table something that not many heavyweights do out there, sheer excitement. This fight is what it’s all about, since day 1 as a pro I wanted to be the heavyweight champ, since being a kid I wanted to be the heavyweight champ, and here we are, 7 weeks on Saturday this massive task. I truly believe that if my heads right, I am physically on my game, there is nothing he can do to beat me.

FF: When you beat Valuev, in your head, it didn’t work out first time round in negotiations with the Klitschko’s, is this a clever move by you to get them to fight you?

DH: Unless they fight each other there is no other heavyweight who generates excitement, without excitement there is no money, without money then what are these 2 big guys waiting around for. They want the biggest shows, the biggest paydays and to sell tickets, and to fight me in a unification, we can sit around the table, it didn’t work out 1st time around, for whatever reason, but next year it will be a unification fight and that’ll really sell, there’s no doubt about it.

FF: What happens to you on the 7th November do you fear for British boxing, in regards to promoters and a lack of TV shows?

It’s getting tougher, but TV networks can demand better shows, the other night with the Tyson fury and John McDermott which was just an English title fight. I was there live, and it was a great show, a good TV fight. Although Hayemaker Promotions don’t have a home for their fighters at the moment it forces fighters to find other promoter shows. Fewer promoters’ means the harder the fights are going to be, so as a business it’s not good, as a boxing fan it’s not the worst thing out there. Fighters will have to have better fights quicker, promoters won’t be able to pad out records for 30 or 40 fights, they are going to find out their fighters quicker, so it’ll be good for British boxing.

FF: It has been a couple of bad months for boxing, and this week we had the terrible news about Darren Sutherland, a guy you knew well. Can we have your reaction to that news?

DH: I saw Darren on Friday at the Frank Maloney show in Brentwood. He seemed okay, he had a little black eye and he said it was infected. He did seem a little pissed off but nothing to the point of where 2 days later he would kill himself. He had the world at his feet, and in my opinion he was one of the best, if not the best of the Olympians. He was suited to the pro game, and even in the amateurs I felt he would go all the way. I talked to him on a regular basis, he was a nice down to earth guy, very focused on boxing, very driven, he had a lot going for him. I seriously can’t get my head around what has happened, why it happened, I was sickened. I didn’t believe it at first , and read it in the paper , hoping it was a sick hoax. Frank Maloney found him, he had a heart attack too, its dark times for British boxing, one of our bright hopes, a nice guy, who had time for anyone, my thoughts are with his family and friends.

Credit for some of the questions go to Dom McGuiness (TalkSport) and MikeCostello (5 Live)

CLICK HERE FOR PHOTO GALLERY