Bellew v Haye: Big Fight Preview.
This Saturday at the O2 Arena in London it really is a case of this is it for David Haye. Defeat by any means will signal the end of his career, it really is s simple as that.
This weekend’s big heavyweight clash could indeed be the end for both fighters. Bellew called the first fight with Haye his pension fight, a repeat win on Saturday and he to might decide to walk away for good.
Last time around most of the questions were aimed in the direction of Bellew, but now Haye is the one with all the doubts surrounding him.
Haye (28-3) at 37 has a body seemingly falling apart at the seams, so the obvious question is can he still do it, the odds yet again think he can.
There is no doubt Haye underestimated Bellew, and that definitely played it’s part in his preparation, or lack of it as some have suggested. The cringe worthy who’s fooling who videos on his yacht in Miami even Haye would now be embarrassed about.
Haye entered the ring with the mindset that he could simply blow away his man. Haye was swinging wildly, loading up on nearly everything he threw, literally launching himself off the floor at times, no working his way into range.
Haye’s balance was dreadful and he looked either a shot fighter, a rusty fighter or a fighter who simply hadn’t prepared properly, or maybe a combination of all 3.
Haye himself called it reckless pressure, this time he promises pressure again but a more educated version.
That said watching it live, I thought after Haye settled down a little you could almost see the ring rust dropping off him. I thought despite how bad he looked early in the fight Haye was still going to win the fight, probably on points, obviously then the injury left no doubt as to who would win, Haye to his credit never stopped trying to win the fight, he didn’t look for the easy way out.
In watching all the pre fight footage I do sense a different Haye, I see apprehension, doubt even and that worries me. Bellew clearly gets under his skin, and in a fight of verbals, Haye is a long way second.
The multiple injuries also greatly concern me, if he has had to nurse his battered body through training, as he been able to fully push his body enough to get the conditioning he will need, if the fight goes long.
Bellew (29-2-1) despite the achilles injury, deserves praise for his performance, he absorbed plenty of heavy shots and survived and defensively made Haye miss, by some distance at times. Basically Bellew did what was needed to win the fight, and remember he told us exactly how it would happen, and it did. Bellew believes that injury or no injury he would have won, he might be right although I don’t share his view.
So who wins the rematch, I always work off a simple premise in rematches, who can improve the most from the first fight.
Bellew despite his pre fight trash talk must have had deep trepidation about the first fight, he knew all about the power of Haye, and there had to be serious doubts he could handle his heavyweight artillery. But Bellew soaked up what came his way and this time confidence wise he must be on another level in comparison, he now knows what to expect.
Would a repeat win for Bellew surprise me, absolutely not. Bellew says himself when the injury happened in the 6th he forgot the gameplan, it all got a bit chaotic farcical even, and that almost certainly made it harder than it should have been to beat the one legged fighter that was in front of him. So a better Bellew this time isn’t that hard to imagine.
But for me it’s Haye who will improve the most, he simply has to. Haye surely knows what’s at stake and hopefully he will have prepared as such. A different mindset, better prepared, should see a much better version of Haye this time.
I think we will see a more controlled Haye, his heavy jab used far more this time, waiting for an opening rather than forcing one.
While the doubts will linger for however the fight lasts that either his body or his conditioning will let him down again, I feel Haye has enough left to get the win back.
PREDICTION:
Haye by 7th round stoppage
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