Dan Rafael: Haye one of the biggest heavyweight frauds ever

[johnswan1]

http://espn.go.com/sports/boxing/blog/_/name/rafael_dan

Like the other nine guys who Wladimir Klitschko has defended the heavyweight title against, David Haye promised he would end the champion's reign.

In fact, the mouthy Haye talked and jabbered and howled and smack-talked for much of the past three years, promising to do all sorts of naughty things to Klitschko.

Promised to leave him twitching on the ring mat, the victim of a crushing knockout. Promised the most brutal execution ever.

Promised a lot of things.

Delivered nothing.

All that Haye -- one of the biggest heavyweight frauds of all time -- did was bark. Like a dog. Because he sure didn't fight much, as Klitschko -- as dominant as ever at age 35 -- picked him apart for the lopsided decision on Saturday in rainy Hamburg, Germany.

It was not a scintillating fight. Far from it. But Klitschko did what he usually does: outbox, outjab, outmuscle and outthink his opponent en route to total domination.

The only thing Klitschko didn't do was score the knockout -- only the second time in this, his second reign, that the opponent has heard the final bell.

Haye made it to the bell because he took none of the chances he promised he would. Instead, he fought scared.

As Klitschko said afterward, "I wish I could have knocked him out impressively. He was scared to fight me. I was expecting more of a challenge in the ring, more aggression. He was super-defensive, like all of them."

After all of the garbage and trash Haye talked, he never came close to backing it up. He said repeatedly that he would retire after the fight. It looked more to me like he retired during the first round, because he didn't really fight.

After the fight, I was thinking about what excuse Haye would come up with. I figured he'd say he had a hand injury. I was close: He claimed to have a broken toe on his right foot that didn't allow him to push off and land his so-called "Hayemaker" right hand.

Excuses, excuses, excuses.

Every fighter has injuries. Few come to the ring without bumps and bruises from a tough training camp. I'm sure Klitschko was also dinged up.

But given the way Haye has always handled himself, I am not surprised at all that he had an alibi at the ready, so much so that he came to his interview in the ring after the fight with HBO's legendary Larry Merchant with his sock already off so that the camera could get a good look at his allegedly injured digit.

It looked OK to me, but I'll give him the benefit of the doubt and say it was injured. If so, take the loss like a man and shut up about it.

There is no Toe-gate here. Haye was simply outclassed by a supreme champion who still has not been challenged to any serious degree since 2005.

Against Haye, Klitschko won 118-108, 117-109 and 116-110. I also had it 118-108. And Haye, who continually flopped to the ground -- I lost track of how many times, frankly -- to buy a point deduction from referee Geno Rodriguez, complaining that Klitschko shoved him to the mat, finally got one in the seventh round. It was a bogus deduction, but Rodriguez fell for it.

But even Rodriguez realized he was being conned, so when Haye flopped again in the 11th round, the ref ruled it a knockdown. It's not like Klitschko needed the extra point. He was cruising.

He landed 134 of 509 punches (26 percent), according to CompuBox. Haye's output was downright pathetic: just 72 of an anemic 290 blows (26 percent).

You can't win if you don't throw. And Haye didn't throw.

I find that funny because, all along, Haye has called Klitschko a boring fighter. And yet on this night, the biggest of his career, Haye was the one who disgraced himself by making it boring, by running away, by not engaging, by not doing much of anything.

Well, except for making excuses about a hurt toe.

So it was Klitschko with another dominant win, a 10th title defense (one more than the prime Mike Tyson during his first run) and now a fourth sanctioning body title in the family. Klitschko and brother Vitali now own all four major belts.

Three for Wladimir and one for Vitali, with no serious challengers on the horizon. (I say that with all due respect to Tomasz Adamek, who I don't give much of a chance against Vitali on Sept. 17. But I know he will at least leave it all in the ring unlike Haye.)

Folks can say whatever they want about the Klitschko brothers, but they win and win and win. They dominate.

Some people want them out of boxing because they aren't the most exciting fighters. Fine. Go find somebody to beat them.

Lord knows, Haye sure talked like he would. Talked and talked and talked.

But his talk turned out not only to be cheap. It was worthless.

[Rocky Balboa]

And just who has Dan Rafael fought? Who has he boxed? How many titles has he Won? How many fights, Wins, Knockouts has he had?

[Lightsoot]

And just who has Dan Rafael fought? Who has he boxed? How many titles has he Won? How many fights, Wins, Knockouts has he had?

And...? How is Rafael wrong? He's been long-time anti-Haye and was vindicated last night.

[History]

It still amazes that people - even experienced journalists who've been around the game for the years - pay the slightest bit of attention to what fighters say during the build up to a fight. And then try and use those words against them when they don't quite produce the super-dooper world class mega performance that they promised they would.

I personally take it all with a pinch of salt, because it's usually just a mixture of P.R. and bravado. The real discussions about tactics and game plans and strengths and weaknesses - what you might call the more realistic assessments - probably stay firmly behind closed doors, so as not to give an opponent a forewarning of what you're going to try and do.

[Gray-Fox]

Fat Dan Rafael is one of the most annoying writers in the world.

[allahsnackbar]

hard to disagree with dan "obesity" raphael

[tonyevs]

The Haye supporters can get upset at the article all they like - but Haye did nothing lastnight to prove any different to what the article says.

Haye was proved to be all hype.

[mkirkhope]

He's fat, but he's right.

I think the fact Haye isn't getting such harsh reviews here is because some of the writers are fans. Dan's a neutral and he's calling it like it was.

I can fully understand why long time commentators are fed up with Haye, with his ridiculous comments and nothing to back it up (as a heavyweight).

[greenyox3]

I don't think Rafael's been proven right at all. I don't remember him ever saying Haye was a bad fighter. He was just very critical of the fact that the fight didn't get made for 2 years, for which he unfairly laid 100% of the blame on Haye.

He took an irrational anti-Haye stance very early on, and I suspect he is now revelling in people saying he was "right". When in fact he has been proven wrong. Why? Because he repeatedly labelled Haye "ducker". And who did you see in the ring with Klitchko last night? Mr Haye. Therefore he did not duck him.

That said, it is very difficult to argue with anything in this article.

[banjo]

I'm more interested in reading Scott Gilfoids take on this!

[Glyn Leach]

It still amazes that people - even experienced journalists who've been around the game for the years - pay the slightest bit of attention to what fighters say during the build up to a fight. And then try and use those words against them when they don't quite produce the super-dooper world class mega performance that they promised they would.

I personally take it all with a pinch of salt, because it's usually just a mixture of P.R. and bravado. The real discussions about tactics and game plans and strengths and weaknesses - what you might call the more realistic assessments - probably stay firmly behind closed doors, so as not to give an opponent a forewarning of what you're going to try and do.

X2
It makes for easy, lazy, fast reporting after the event, that's all.
Mention it by all means but don't hang an entire report on it.
The Gilf would never stoop so low.

[Cas]

I think people expected more from Haye. At the end of the day, most bought into the hype surrounding the fight.

Haye only ever really had a punchers chance. Maybe some guys followed their heart instead of their head.

[THE MESSIAH]

Considering who he has fought and what he ahs doe, he can be called a fraud.

When your best wins are against past it heavies and Enzo - who can say he is not a fraud?

AFTER ALL HIS TALK!

Always said he was not that fast or powerful at heavyweight.

[mikewl]

Haye dissapointed, he was outmatched and didn't give it his all, had he thrown caution to the wind in the second half trying anything even if it meant being knocked out at least he would have given it his all.

I can't help but think back to other fighters, a broken toe, ok a hinderence but come on biggest night of your life for millions of pounds, what about Danny Williams, what heart he showed fighting on with a dislocated shoulder and going for broke, Evander Holyfield having part of his ear bitten off and he responded by getting it on and trying to make Tyson pay, even Williams against Vitali showed major bravado coming forward repeatedly getting off the canvas and giving it his all, you can't knock fighters when they put 100% into it win or lose, the problem is Haye didn't go for it, didn't want to take risks, preffered the option of surviving than going for broke.

Unforunately this postfight stuff is going to be very negative towards Haye.

[jamesmcdonnell]

And just who has Dan Rafael fought? Who has he boxed? How many titles has he Won? How many fights, Wins, Knockouts has he had?

What a moronic comment. So if you haven't boxed you cannot criticise a fighter?

Haye talked the talk, but didn't walk the walk. I don't care if he had a broken toe, he just didn't go for it on the night. That's fine, except that he talked so much shit beforehand to sell the fight, talking about what he was going to do to Wlad, but when it came down to it, he didn't want to risk getting beaten up, so he basically did nothing. That's ok for the average man in the street, but not for a professional fighter who was being paid millions of pounds to fight for the biggest prize in sport.

I said all along that Haye could not win this fight, but I thought he would at least make a decent fist of it....he didn't. There's no shame in losing, but there definitely is in not giving of your best.

[MightyWarrior]

don't like Rafael much, but have to agree with him here. After all the bullshit and threats, for 6 million big ones Haye at least should have taken a risk and gone for it last night, and the toe is a piss poor and embarrassing excuse.

[THE MESSIAH]

don't like Rafael much, but have to agree with him here. After all the bullshit and threats, for 6 million big ones Haye at least should have taken a risk and gone for it last night, and the toe is a piss poor and embarrassing excuse.

In toetal agreement.

[NazNaci1]

Considering who he has fought and what he ahs doe, he can be called a fraud.

When your best wins are against past it heavies and Enzo - who can say he is not a fraud?

AFTER ALL HIS TALK!

Always said he was not that fast or powerful at heavyweight.

Mormeck, Fragomeni, Hurov and others dont count?

It was not like he was pounded or beaten up. So much for your prediction of a KO. I was wrong but your just talking crap mate.

[THE MESSIAH]

Considering who he has fought and what he ahs doe, he can be called a fraud.

When your best wins are against past it heavies and Enzo - who can say he is not a fraud?

AFTER ALL HIS TALK!

Always said he was not that fast or powerful at heavyweight.

Mormeck, Fragomeni, Hurov and others dont count?

It was not like he was pounded or beaten up. So much for your prediction of a KO. I was wrong but your just talking crap mate.

He could have fought Cunningham at cruiser. Adamek at heavy - even Arreola or a Eddie Chambers. But no, he chose Ruia and Audley at almost 40 and Valuev.


He did not back it up, toe or no toe!

[Adamj1987]

Fat Dan Rafael is one of the most annoying writers in the world.

[Benelio]

Dan Rafael has been doing his best to get '#mytoehurts' trending on twitter, and has tweeted out dozens of toe-puns since the fight. Comes off as a vindictive and unprofessional journalist to me.

[goldenears]

all this because Haye didn't shake his hand at a fight. He's been trying to snipe at him for years.

The fat idiot is one of the worst journalists in boxing anyway

[DIRT SUGAR]

If you bark and don't bite then prepare to take what's coming your way.

[THE MESSIAH]

HAYE IS A FRAUD, ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT VIOLENT KNOCKOUTS AND NEVER DELIVERS.


ALL TALK BUT NO SUBSTANCE.

[greenyox3]

HAYE IS A FRAUD, ALWAYS TALKING ABOUT VIOLENT KNOCKOUTS AND NEVER DELIVERS.


ALL TALK BUT NO SUBSTANCE.

NEVER delivers? I think his last 2 fights have been pretty violent ko's...

I think the backlash against him has been way over the top. Yes he talked a lot, but he's not the 1st to do that and he won't be the last. What was he supposed to do, shake Wlad's hand all nicely and tell the world how great he was and what an honour it would be to share a ring with him? He was trying to get under his skin. It didn't work, he lost, let's get over it.

This, unfortunately, is what we do in the UK. Build 'em up, knock 'em down. And Rafael's clearly got something personal against him so is now milking it, which smacks of a lack of professionalism.