u probably know more than i do realting to haye's earlier career. so i dont feel justified in comparing him to his earlier style. ive just noticed he throws a lot of power shots and has had stamina issues at cw. now, he will be 220-230 or so. will he change his style with the weight gain? he's on a narrow frame and all that muscle may look great but tends to create stamina issues in later rounds especially with an aggressive style. he should try to fighta title holder first. if he wins, then wlad-haye becomes a legit fight in early '09. it would be huge. if he fights cans and calls wlad out, he looks like a fool to anyone with objectivity. the only people saying this fight needs to happen NOW are haye and his delusional fan base.
I'm not sure that Haye can handle the punch of a strong heavyweight. Valuev isn't a huge puncher, but he certainly hits harder than the average cruiser. The long jab of Valuev is slow, but heavy and reasonably accurate. His right has some power, and Nicolay's chin is very impressive. Haye can bang, but I doubt he can KO Valuev. I can imagine a decision in favor of Haye, but I lean toward a late KO by Valuev.