haha, he pretty much said what you said "grown men pay to watch fake beef in a fake fight, why do they have a problem when theres beef in a real fight"
I will add another thing that might make this fight interesting. If David Haye does actually do Bellew serious physical harm like he's been talking about, that would have quite a serious impact on the sport in the UK at the moment. I mean, apparently he's been talking about damage and comas and stuff. Says it's what he wants to do. If that actually transpires, it will be interesting. It's not something I would like to see but then I won't be watching this fight live anyway. Apparently people are wanting to see a mismatch and genuinely do believe Haye is capable and he desires such a fate for poor little Bellew.
Watched it now. Good stuff from Paulie, but I still get the feeling he is holding back a bit. If Sky and Hearn's coins weren't dropping into his pocket I think he would have gone a step further and made the point that the 'beef' came from nowhere just to make the fight. The fight is happening all because of Bellew really. He took one look at the Cruiserweight landscape after winning his title and realised from here on in it's all tough fights for relatively little reward. He looked a bit further and obviously came to the conclusion that David Haye was the only big money fight that could be manufactured. I also reckon it was touch and go whether Eddie Hearn was actually going to go along with the farce. I'm sure Bellew and Hearn's first proper conversation about it was an interesting one.
I was thinking the exact same things you, is very enjoyable knowing that your hero is going to win. that said a feud is always a great way it allows people the possibility of a Cinderella moment.
Good point, it's a very risky strategy for David because what happens if he does kill his opponent or put them in a coma he will be persona non grata big time. Could really haunt him. It's also unnecessary and no one actually wants anyone to get injured however much they hate the fighter
Depends how you look at it mate. In terms of boxing quality it was really poor, Haye is well past it and Bellew just isn't that good. As a spectacle though the fight got everyone's attention. It was interesting to start with when everyone realised Bellew could match Haye. Once the injury kicked in it took Bellew far too long to get the job done. The fight was certainly dramatic, albeit both boxers were quite poor.
I actually thought it was a very entertaining fight which had me on the edge of me seat, although the high skill level was lacking. I'd be interested to hear how many PPV buys it did, wouldn't surprise me if it done over 500,000.
Don't be so quick to knee-jerk. One loss to one fighter...in a "lottery" fight where literally any outcome was likely...and you rush to put the boot in on the trainer???? Come on!
Thought he was poor in the Cruz-Frampton fight. Adam Booth said Haye looked like he did on the first day back sparring after a long lay-off. Booth reckons he will have done very little sparring. The snaps of Shane watching him do yoga on a yacht don't sit well.
The only slight hope for haye left...is if he went into the fight injured. Otherwise its over for him. If its not over already. He was far removed from his glory days them first six rounds. Anything other than a convincing win over bellew pretty much spells the end for him. Think hes had bad luck with the injury happening prior to the fight. But its over for him now in terms of being a serious challenger. Looking at a decent lay off with the injury. Needs to grow up now and make the necessary changes to his lifestyle. Coming back for paydays...to sustain a lifestyle only ever ends one way. They still end up skint in the end plus a lot more humiliated. His comeback had to be a smash and grab...couldnt afford any setbacks. Like injuries. Inactivity. Both of them ended up happening. A bellew victory looks like his ceiling now. Whats the point really.