12 Jun 2019
Haye-Bellew II was inevitable after one of the biggest boxing upsets of 2017 saw Bellew knock out an injured Haye in Round 11. Will he return stronger from his Achilles injury or will Bellew reign supreme once again?
The talk going into the first encounter between possibly Britain’s best ever cruiserweights was that David Haye – plying his trade at heavyweight since 2008 – was going to be simply too big, strong and athletic for the self-proclaimed ‘fat, little, scouse cruiser’ Bellew. That talk immediately appeared premature, as despite Haye winning the opening rounds behind his jab, Bellew was hard to hit and appeared the more natural boxer of the two. However, in Round 6 the fight dynamics changed completely due to Haye rupturing his Achilles. Bellew immediately claimed the centre of the ring and begun to tee off on the virtually immobile Haye, eventually sending the Hayemaker through the ropes with a left hook and ending the fight in round 11.
Questions after the fight centred around how different things would have been if the Knockout Artist Haye could have remained healthy and been able to land his fearsome right hand. However, others pointed to Bellew’s superior boxing skills and ability to make Haye miss as factors that would bode well for him in the later rounds leading to a win for the ‘Bomber’ regardless. Both those questions should be answered on Saturday.
Has Haye maintained his knockout power?
There has been a long history of aging sports stars rupturing their Achilles and never being the same again. Most recently Kobe Bryant went from a top 10 player in the NBA to a negative on the floor for his team after an Achilles injury sapped him of all his athleticism. Comparing Haye to Bryant is slightly crude given the latter’s far greater achievements, however both men relied heavily on superior athleticism within their sport to achieve their success. Prior to the Bellew fight, Haye had only lost twice in 30 fights, with 26 of those wins coming by knockout and a staggering 22 of those KO’s within the first five rounds. Haye overwhelmed opponents with his speed and power, often resulting in brutal knockouts – Enzo Maccrinelli’s chin was never the same after facing Haye. If Haye’s power has returned, plus his motivation will be immense to avenge the defeat to his rival, then Haye to win in rounds 1-3 at 5/1 may well be worth a shout. Alternatively, Haye has finished nine fights in the first round. If he comes out all guns blazing ready to make a statement and push for a world title fight against either Joshua or Wilder then a first round finish to the fight at 18/1 could be a tasty proposition.
Bellew to repeat with Boxing skill?
Tony Bellew shocked the world when he defeated David Haye in March 2017. It certainly may not be as big a shock if he triumphs over Haye once again, but the victory may well be sweeter for the ‘Bomber’ who will feel there is still an asterisk over the first fight due to the injury. Over the first four rounds of the fight, a ‘healthy’ Haye landed 15 of his 109 total punches thrown. Bellew limited Haye to landing only 14% of his punches in the first four rounds and 25% for the entire fight. If Bellew can continue to make Haye miss in the rematch, then it’s more than likely the decision will go his way with the cleaner boxing. Although himself a big puncher Bellew only has 19KOs in his 29 wins and it took him five rounds to get rid of Haye in the first fight despite Haye having limited mobility. If you’re backing Bellew, a points victory for him seems to be the most sensible result and at 11/2 for the judges to award the victory to Bellew those odds should certainly turn some heads.
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