At 37 years old - and trying to rely on speed and reflexes and like a poster above said athleticism and fitness with an injured leg and various injuries - it is a recipe for disaster. His chin is also not what it once was. There's a reason why he pulled out against Fury etc and before against Bellew, he can't train at 100 per cent he can barely train at 60 per cent. It shows in the ring he was punching through treacle and really just getting one last payday to help Hayemaker Promotions. His focus should be on Joyce and promoting, Joyce is an excellent fighter who could earn him a lot of money if his career goes correctly. Haye also needs to learn how to hold, he tried to outman Bellew once more, it failed miserably.
On that last point, in both fights the reason why Haye never held when he was hurt is because he was looking for a counter KO punch. He wanted to invite Bellew for the kill to try and pick him off. It’s not on Haye’s DNA to defend - just look at his left elbow to Chisora’s face in Germany.
Bellew is a fighter you need to breakdown and not go for a wild KO on - Makubu/Mckenzie/Ofijase all had Bellew badly hurt and knocked down but his recovery is excellent. Meanwhile Stevenson beat Bellew by being fitter and sharper and after Bellew blew his load with his attack Stevenson just broke him down and stopped him. You have to fight smart against the bomber, use his wild attacks against him. The Bellew of 2018 is a MUCH better fighter compared to the freeswinging man who struggled against Chilemba. But a smart boxer like Usky or Gassiev would really destroy him. However i favour Bellew against Povetkin or the winner of Charr Oquendo or Lebedev/Huck/Glowacki. There are still good winnable fights out there for the bomber as long as he doesn't fight Breidis/Dorticos/Gassiev/Usky/Whyte/Parker/Miller/Wilder/Pulev/Ortiz Meanwhile for Haye, sad to see him lose like that, but i hope he knows that he's had his day. He once again lied about injuries, he was clearly hurt on his ankle, and he couldn't rotate his punches properly.
I think hate could have had a chance if he hadnt tried to rely on the the very skillset which he no longer posesees. I.e speed and timing. Did great in the first round when he stuck to the jab and was nice and relaxed. Why not stick to that and try to hold, high guard and just box. Soon as he started swinging and pressing the fight it was always going to be game over as bellow is a good counter puncher. I still think bellew would have stopped him late as no matter what hate did he would have gassed but his tactics were all wrong here. Belles was right, he soon reverted to type, couple of rounds of boxing then back to swinging aimlessly. Haye was one of my favourite fighters it's really sad that he decided to come back from retirement to tarnish his career.
He went out like a warrior. It's a tough sport. Nothing to be ashamed of or to look back on with any regrets.
Lol nope. Said he would go back, look at the tapes and see what next to do. Don't think he needs to watch any tapes. Every fighter at the end of their careers know that they just don't have it anymore. This is a cruel and unforgiving sport.
I remember when he came back vs those two clowns and there were some people who actually tried to claim Haye still had it. Those fights told us nothing about David Haye. The bellew fights told us everything.
Every fighter that hangs on for too long can expect a sad end it's never going to end well. Whatever you think about Haye, he was an entertainer, he rarely gave a boring performance. He talked a lot of ****, charmed the media and casual fans, gave us spectacular KO's and thrilling nights. I first saw him fight when winning Silver at the world amateur championships. Followed his pro career from the start, watched the upset vs Thompson, the triump vs Mormeck, the David vs Goliath coronation of a new champion vs Valeuv, the disappointment vs Wlad, the war vs Chisora and now the sun setting against Bellew. I for one will miss him, I always looked forward to his fights, even when it was clear he was a shadow of his former self.