I dont even consider Haye having a career. A couple of meaningful fights at Heavyweight , retired at 31 in a category when the bigger mean hit prime around 33 or 34 (Tyson not included). Hamed for all his madness was at or near the top for a decade.
Much as I found Hamed abrasive,he had supreme ability.I remember a news strand where they showed him at 13 in the gym.They said that he could go in with any boxer in the gym(outwith the pros I'm guessing) and go full rounds without him being able to throw a single punch yet none of them could land a glove on him.They showed a quick clip of him doing it and if it was true I realised what a feat that was.His defensive ability seemed unique at one point.Ended up tagged a few times though whenever he stepped up his world title opponents level-wise.Have to admit Barrera shutting him up was one of my all time highlights,but even though he quit when he really needed to show what he was made of you have to admit if there's such a thing as a God given ability to box,he had it.Criticism is justified,but what's right is right.Even if Haye was 50-0,Hamed had more skill,speed,power and ability.And Haye was fun for a while,Hamed made it hard to be onside.It's not a question of popularity or even resume when you really think about it.
Despite Hamed not being as good as he or anyone else thought he was, he still made an impressive number of title defenses at 126lbs, beating a good list of names along the way. Kevin Kelley, Steve Robinson, Manuel Medina, Wayne McCullough, Vuyani Bungu, etc. All very respectable fighters, and Hamed's performances against Robinson and Bungu were particuarly impressive. Hamed was a more effective fighter than Haye, and he proved it against a better level of opposition.
You can definitely tell that he's special even when you watch him at a very young age: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8wk22NLF8o[/ame] There's also this very short clip of him in the ring with Herol Graham: [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=By4ZUPgrWVc[/ame]