David Haye’s stirring fifth round demolition Saturday night of thuggish Del Boy Chisora and the display of good sportsmanship by both camps afterwards gives both the UK and world boxing scenes a positive shot in the arm. Haye is no Lennox Lewis, no Evander Holyfield and no Mike Tyson in terms of skill. But he is the world heavyweight champion of trash talking and, in a division dominated by the Ukrainian behemoth Klitschko Brothers, he can be the straw that stirs the drink. Haye may never beat a Klit Bro but someday both Vitali and Wladimir will be exiting the ring, with Vitali already in the rough and tumble of politics in his native land and with Wladimir possibly launching an acting career from his part time residence in the Hollywood area. Haye will never have the broad, unwavering British popularity that Ricky Hatton has enjoyed, either, but he is a compelling figure and he knows how to land verbal jobs which garner mass media coverage and jack up TV fight ratings. The UK heavyweight pot is beginning to boil with rising stars Tyson Fury and David Price coming to the forefront. Haye against either or both means huge paynights for all concerned. So sing no sad songs for Hayemaker for he can only get richer and richer by being England’s Heavyweight Hitmaker. British boxing needs Haye and Amir Khan to continue to be successful just as it needs Fury and/or Price to turn into a real threat to Haye. So out of what looked like a fistic freak show at the West Ham football grounds Saturday night, I see only plusses for UK boxing. Like him or loathe him, everyone pays attention to David Haye. Wish that we had an American heavyweight who can stir the drink like Mouthy David does. We don’t even have a heavyweight drink let alone a straw to stir the contents with.
