Big Fight Preview - Haye looks destined to end Harrison’s dream
David Haye and Audley Harrison have endured widely contrasting fortunes as professionals, but an improbable chain of events has brought the former amateur teammates together at Manchester’s M.E.N Arena on Saturday night.
It seemed inconceivable 12 months ago that Haye, having just pick-pocketed lumbering giant Nikolay Valuev’s WBA heavyweight crown in Nuremberg, would fail to finally strike a deal with the Klitschko brothers to unify the heavyweight division. Despite prolonged negotiations, accusations and counter accusations, both parties have lamentably failed to find common ground in order to inject some much needed intrigue into an increasingly stale heavyweight scene.
Haye, currently left with few viable commercial alternatives following frustrated television paymasters HBO’s decision to abandon the heavyweights, has elected to boost his bank balance if not his reputation by throwing Harrison (above right, courtesy L Lustig) an ill-deserved lifeline to realise his world title dream. On paper it looks a routine defence for the 30-year-old Haye, who impressed in stopping former WBA champion John Ruiz in nine rounds in his first title defence at this same venue in April.
As the first bell approaches there is a growing belief in some quarters that Harrison, who has never given up hope of fulfilling his “destiny”, will finally bring all of his considerable talent together and reproduce the brilliant form that led him to an Olympic gold medal in Sydney a decade ago. But even if Audley does succeed in bringing his “A-Game” into the ring, is it going to be enough against the younger, quicker and more powerful David Haye who is arguably in his prime?
It would be a remarkable story if the much-maligned Harrison could fulfil his ambitions at the age of 39 after being written off following his defeats to Danny Williams, Dominick Guinn, Michael Sprott and Martin Rogan. These disappointing performances, against fighters not even considered to be world title contenders, highlighted Harrison’s shortcomings in the professional ranks which were encapsulated by hesitancy, an inability to fight inside and a lack of trust in his own chin (arguably vindicated by Michael Sprott in their first meeting).
It is testimony to Audley’s unwavering self-belief and determination that on each occasion he has dusted himself down and vowed to keep trying in pursuit of his goal. His resolve to remain strong, even in his darkest moments of despair and humiliation, is both moving and inspirational. Win or lose, Harrison is likely to go out on his shield on Saturday. If he does, Audley could finally make his peace with the British public as the similarly revered Chris Eubank did when suffering back-to-back defeats to the bigger, stronger Carl Thompson in 1998.
It’s easy to be taken in by Harrison’s “Yes I can” rhetoric, but the real facts always speak louder. Audley’s Prizefighter success, which ignited his virtually extinguished career, exposed the same old deficiencies against relative novices in Scott Belshaw, Danny Hughes and Coleman Barrett. It’s worth remembering just how easily the smaller Barrett was handling Harrison by confusing him with speed and movement until he got caught and taken out with 20 seconds remaining in round two. At the time I wrote, “The 37-year-old Prizefighter favourite looked booked for yet another disappointing defeat after he was constantly beaten to the punch and made to look cumbersome by the spirited Barrett up until the dramatic turnaround”.
It’s difficult to determine whether Prizefighter signaled the emergence of Harrison as an attack-minded fighter in place of the more cautious one of old. In his last fight, there was little between Harrison and Michael Sprott when Audley suffered a ruptured pectoral muscle in the second round of their rematch for the vacant European title in April. Forced to fight one-handed for the remainder, Harrison sensationally salvaged his career by flattening Sprott with a peach of a left hand in the final round when trailing on all three scorecards. If Harrison can find David Haye’s jaw with a similar punch, a sensational upset is more than plausible. There is no guarantee though that Harrison will be 100% after recovering from what was the latest in a catalogue of previous injuries that have affected his stop-start career.
Even since he was stopped by Jim Twite in the amateurs there have been question marks over Haye’s punch resistance which resurfaced again recently amid unsubstantiated rumours (started by Harrison) that he was floored in sparring by Tony Thompson. The knockdowns that Haye has suffered as a pro don’t entirely support the view that David is “chinny”, however. His early career knockdown against light-heavyweight Lolenga Mock was from a temple shot which can distort any fighter’s equilibrium. Haye’s only defeat against Carl Thompson, which saw him dropped and eventually stopped on his feet in the fifth, was more down to exhaustion than anything else and he was still fighting back when referee Terry O’Connor intervened.
A weight-weakened Haye was also able to recover quickly after being knocked down by Jean Marc Mormeck in round four to storm back and stop the Frenchman three rounds later to capture the WBA and WBC cruiserweight titles. Finally, evidence that Haye suffered a flash knockdown against Monte Barrett remains inconclusive. Even if he did, Haye bounced straight up and clinically took Barrett out afterwards. Could Harrison’s knockout power rather like the apparent vulnerability of Haye’s chin be exaggerated?
Harrison could certainly trouble Haye and send the WBA champion to the canvas if he lands cleanly. My suspicion though is that it will be Haye’s proven power that will ultimately decide this fight. Doubts that David’s concussive punches would not have the same effect at heavyweight as they did at cruiserweight have been emphatically dispelled. Tomasz Bonin, who extended Harrison into the ninth, was destroyed by Haye inside a round. Monte Barrett, whilst a faded force, was unhinged every time he felt the force of Haye’s gloves. Furthermore, David nearly toppled the giant Valuev in the final round and floored the normally durable John Ruiz four times in a surprisingly one-sided first defence of his title.
It’s difficult to envisage Harrison surviving the storm if Haye gets him on the rack. Not only is Haye powerful, the champion is an excellent finisher. The dangerous Alexander Gurov and Enzo Maccarinelli were chillingly and quickly despatched and Haye showed his predatory instincts to ruthlessly take out Giacobbe Fragomeni and the aforementioned Mormeck when he had them hurt. If Harrison can be stunned by the light-punching Mark Krence and Matthew Ellis, and knocked cold by Michael Sprott, then what effect will Haye’s punches have on him? More worryingly for Audley, Haye remains a threat from the first round until the last and would appear to have addressed previous concerns regarding his stamina.
The keys to a Harrison victory rest in his ability to impose his considerable height, reach and physical strength advantages on Haye and maintain a red-hot pace by not allowing David to fight in short bursts. Audley is certainly capable of doing so, as proven by his revenge third round stoppage over Danny Williams, but such displays of ruthlessness have been the exception rather than the norm in Harrison’s career.
Encouragingly for Harrison, Haye allowed himself to be easily dictated to and pushed onto the backfoot by much smaller men in the shape of Lolenga Mock, Giacobbe Fragomeni and Lasse Johansen. It’s imperative that Audley keeps Haye on the end of a firm, southpaw jab and brings his other artillery, most notably the uppercut and his favoured left hand, into play. In contrast, Haye will look to maintain his distance and use his superior speed and footwork to get his punches off first and nail Harrison coming in with his potent right hand.
Much has been written in the build-up about this being Harrison’s last chance. However if Haye’s plans to retire at the end of 2011 are true, Saturday also represents a final opportunity for him to firmly establish himself as British boxing’s poster boy and increase the demand for a heavyweight unification showdown with either Klitschko brother before he walks away.
I expect a focused and fired-up Harrison to be competitive early on but Haye’s ice-coolness under pressure, lightening speed, greater power and pinpoint accuracy will ultimately bring the curtain down on Audley’s lingering dreams within six rounds.
