By Matthew Hurley: World Boxing Association and World Boxing Council cruiserweight champion David Haye has already begun a war of words with his March 8th opponent WBO champion Enzo Maccarinelli. Haye, 20-1 with 19 KOs won the titles with a seventh round TKO over Jean-Marc Mormeck on November 10th in France..
After the victory the fighter contemplated a move up to the heavyweight division amid claims that he could no longer make the cruiserweight limit. But an all British grudge match against Maccarinelli, 28-1 with 21 KOs proved to be irresistible to both fighters and promoter Frank Warren. Although the fight does not yet have a venue Haye insists that he will fight in Maccarinelli’s backyard of Cardiff if need be.
“The fans really wanted this fight, so it would be wrong for me to blow this boy away in ten seconds,” Haye told PA Sport. “If we go to Cardiff, he will have fifty thousand people screaming his name, getting him revved up. It will lift him one hundred percent. Maybe that way this fight will last. He needs all the help he can get.”
Haye later told the South London Press that, “I can’t see it going past four or five rounds. The only way it will is if he gets a chin transplant from Marvin Hagler.”
Maccarinelli, who last defeated Mohamed Azzaoui by a fourth round TKO, is thrilled that the morass that was the negotiation process for the fight has been cleared away. The Welsh fighter feared that the bout would never come off when Haye threatened the move to heavyweight but now he feels his moment has arrived.
“I spent years begging Frank Warren for this,” he says. “Even before he beat Mormeck this was the biggest domestic fight around and that’s exactly what I want to be involved in.”
Enzo, happy to engage Haye with verbal taunts feels that there will only be one conclusion to the fight. “I can’t make a prediction on how long the fight will last, but I know when I land the big one on him the fight will be over.”
Not to be outdone Haye continues to marginalize Maccarinelli in the press. “Maccarinelli is a manufactured fighter,” he contends. “From the first bell I will race straight out there and put the right hand on his chin. This fight is all about my right hand. He hasn’t fought anybody as fast as me, in my pedigree or in my shape. It’s going to be explosive and a shock to his system. He’s never been near a ring with anyone as good as me in there and this will become glaringly obvious. You will see the difference between world class and a guy who is a notch below me. You’ll see it as soon as the bell rings.”
The cruiserweight unification bout between David Haye and Enzo Maccarinelli will be broadcast on Setanta Sports.