Hamburg: A few thoughts...

[SteveDow]

Hi guys, just got back from Hamburg and thought I'd share a few thoughts.

The fight was obviously a massive disappointment. Haye just never got going, didn't take enough risks and once Wlad had established his jab (which he did from the outset) Haye was always going to be in for a long night. The toe issue may have hampered Haye but the result would have still been the same regardless. Klitschko is just too big and skilled for Haye who could only win by knock out whatever the circumstances.

Tactically, I felt that Haye fought the wrong fight. For me, his best chance of winning was to put it on Wlad early and catch him cold. Trying to outbox Klitschko fails on two levels: firstly, Haye is simply not good enough technically. Haye's style in that of an ambush fighter rather than a boxer and trying to beat Klitschko at his own game was naive. Secondly, even if he had outboxed Wlad, the chances of winning a decision were very slim. He'd have had to have totally dominated the fight to have got the decision and that was never going to happen against Wlad. I think Haye felt the power of Wlad early on and became wary of taking big risks for fear of being stopped.

The weather was obviously awful and this put a real dampener (pardon the pun!) on the occasion for me. My wife was freezing cold and getting away from the stadium was just farcical. We were left in the torrential rain and could not find a taxi or train station that was open and thousands of others were in the same situation. Really poor organisation given that the Arena is in the middle of nowhere.

One high point was meeting Steve Bunce in the bar at the Radisson Blu hotel. We had a quick beer with him and a chat. Hell of a nice bloke and really enjoyed meeting him.

Overall, a bit of a disappointing weekend in terms of the fight and the weather but enjoyed myself overall.

[UpperCrust]

Just back myself!!

Have to say unbelievable atmosphere but all that were there felt very disappointed by Haye's lack of rist taking. Speaking to people after the fight the consensus seemed to be, they would have must rather he risked getting KO'd 10,11,12 by going for it more as he was clearly behind on the cards.

Great evening out in Hamburg with the Brits afterwards but the taxi situation was awful, we had to walk for an hour to find one (many waited longer!) and the rain was like torrential!

[Abbo]

I jumped on the first bus back for the U-bahn. It was utter sardines and then some fat prick starting smashing the windows with the little emergency hammer

[Crazyboy]

same as me that Steve, everything up to the fight was great, fantastic atmosphere in the arena and then...........

the fight......oh dear.

I won't comment on that, but like you just got drenched with everyone else trying to find some way of getting back to the hotel. We ended up find a shop and paid the actual shopkeeper to drive us to the hotel! hahaha

We were going to go out after but the rain and result meant as soon as we got back to the hotel i sulked off to my room and slept lol.

great weekend though, shame bout the fight and rain.

[forcefraser]

I jumped on the first bus back for the U-bahn. It was utter sardines and then some fat prick starting smashing the windows with the little emergency hammer

I was on that same bus, squashed up against a window. Awful stuff. When I got back to civilization I was piss wet through.

Woke up in a bus shelter later that night with a kebab on my head. Not sure how I got there, but after the disappointment of the fight and the weather, I do recall making a plan with my mate to get heavy into it and sod the consequences.

[mahatma]

just got back had a good weekend saturdays rainfall was of biblical proportions never stopped all day.
Stadium dificullt to get to and horrendous wait at the end to get on a bus in the rain, felt mugged off by hayes performance tbh freezing soaked at the end.
The security there wasnt used to this type of event and hundreds flooded into the main area from the stands and stood in the seating areas behind the press area- i bet plenty of people who had paid 1000s for their tickets were pissed off that there areas were invaded

[Abbo]

The organisation was awful. If anyone has ever been to a German fight night before though, they'd know the chalk&cheese difference in vibe. Normally they all file in, dressed up to the nines as if they are going to the theatre. The utter bedlam of 20,000 pissed up brits on the razzle must have knocked them bandy.

It was a joke on the way out, it was as if we "surprised" them when we all piled out. The bus driver thought he was a goner.

[jamesmcdonnell]

So so so glad I didn't waste my time and money going to see this pish.

Bring on Carl Froch, a fighter who never dissapoints fans, win or lose.

[Crazyboy]

I have been to close on one hundred German shows and they have always been organised with clinical efficiency. It would appear on this occasion, though, they may have underestimated the retard element travelling amongst the Brits, the Germans are a superior class of people, by and large, you see.

Don't agree mate, they were not organised at all after the fight.....just left everyone to their own devices and left us all wondering what to do next? it wasn't underestimating the reatd element that was the problem, they simply got it wrong. They knew the numbers that were coming and should have been prepared for it, they weren't.

[Abbo]

The british fans were impeccably behaved on the whole. Asides from that prick on the bus, I didn't see one act of aggression (that includes Haye!).

The Germans were in awe of the passion and loud support from the travelling fans, who remember had been on-it-large in Reeperbahn since Friday.

As previously stated, it was hugely understaffed with regards to security, police and general logistics. Much like the undercard, I think many corners were cut.

[earsjohn]

From TV the stadium didn't look at capacity and there have been reports that there was a gate of only 30,000 - some way short of the 55,000 expected. Is this an indication that the fight didn't capture the imagination of the German public who normally turn out for the Klits in their numbers? Without the boost from the UK fans it would have been pretty empty.

[Big Ben]

That's Hamburg for you. It's a beautiful city, but the people are generally a bit..lazy;)

[SteveDow]

I have to say that the British fans were very patient and well behaved given the sheer ridiculousness of the situation we were put in afterwards. The stadium is very far away from the main train station and to not have many buses or taxis available to take the fans back was just unacceptable.

My wife was absolutely fuming and rightly so and I don't think she'd come with me again to a fight (maynot be such a bad thing! ) but it did really detract from what was in general a great weekend.

I'm amazed there was not a serious injury given how many people were piled up on the few buses that there were.

Another little gripe was the lack of choice as regards drinks at the Arena. Only lager and (very watered down) vodka redbull. Would have been nice to have had a bit more choice.

[mkirkhope]

From TV the stadium didn't look at capacity and there have been reports that there was a gate of only 30,000 - some way short of the 55,000 expected. Is this an indication that the fight didn't capture the imagination of the German public who normally turn out for the Klits in their numbers? Without the boost from the UK fans it would have been pretty empty.

I heard on the tv on the Saturday afternoon that it was 'not sold out yet' but they didn't mention figures.

Klitschko Chambers sold 51k tickets quite quickly so if the attendance is less than that then its very strange.

I said on the weigh-in thread that this fight wasn't catching fire as much as was being claimed here in the UK (and got absolutely slaughtered for that view) but I would still expect a 50k crowd at least for what Haye described as the 'biggest fight in boxing in 10 years'.

I thought it was interesting that Booth said the crowd was 75% from the UK. Given that the biggest figure I've heard for UK fans was 15,000, those numbers just don't add up.

[Crazyboy]

I have been to close on one hundred German shows and they have always been organised with clinical efficiency. It would appear on this occasion, though, they may have underestimated the retard element travelling amongst the Brits, the Germans are a superior class of people, by and large, you see.

Don't agree mate, they were not organised at all after the fight.....just left everyone to their own devices and left us all wondering what to do next? it wasn't underestimating the reatd element that was the problem, they simply got it wrong. They knew the numbers that were coming and should have been prepared for it, they weren't.

Do you mean they were disorganised at the venue? If that was an issue, fair enough. If there was a problem getting from the venue to your hotel etc, I don't see how that is the fault of the promoters.

Hmmm, good point, my only gripe is with the transport situation. Admittedly, we could have arranged a taxi or something but we honestly thought there would be transport laid on, shuttle buses etc.

From my experience they didn't do anything wrong inside the Stadium and to be honest i was having a superb night up until the fight lol

So yes you are right, my gripe isn't with the show itself, it was the fiasco outside after.

[earsjohn]

From TV the stadium didn't look at capacity and there have been reports that there was a gate of only 30,000 - some way short of the 55,000 expected. Is this an indication that the fight didn't capture the imagination of the German public who normally turn out for the Klits in their numbers? Without the boost from the UK fans it would have been pretty empty.

I heard on the tv on the Saturday afternoon that it was 'not sold out yet' but they didn't mention figures.

Klitschko Chambers sold 51k tickets quite quickly so if the attendance is less than that then its very strange.

I said on the weigh-in thread that this fight wasn't catching fire as much as was being claimed here in the UK (and got absolutely slaughtered for that view) but I would still expect a 50k crowd at least for what Haye described as the 'biggest fight in boxing in 10 years'.

I thought it was interesting that Booth said the crowd was 75% from the UK. Given that the biggest figure I've heard for UK fans was 15,000, those numbers just don't add up.

It certainly sold well on TV here (upwards of 1m buys so the rumour mill is suggesting) and 15k travelling fans is close to extraordinary (is there a single fighter in the world who could go to a foreign country and take that many fans? I'm not counting 50k American Pacquiao fans who turn up in Texas as they've not travelled from his home country).

What is the reason for the low gate? Was Haye seen as less relevant an opponent than Chambers? Are the German fighting public starting to get bored of Klitschko fights? It's worth noting that the next Klitschko fight will be in his opponents backyard in Poland.

[stujones]

So so so glad I didn't waste my time and money going to see this pish.

Bring on Carl Froch, a fighter who never dissapoints fans, win or lose.

The dirrel fight was worst than this one IMO.

[Counter-puncher]

Hmmm, good point, my only gripe is with the transport situation. Admittedly, we could have arranged a taxi or something but we honestly thought there would be transport laid on, shuttle buses etc.

So yes you are right, my gripe isn't with the show itself, it was the fiasco outside after.

shuttle buses? shuttle buses? have you ever had shuttle buses arranged for you following UK boxing shows?

my experience of UK shows is that fans pretty much have to make their own way home? and, you know, think about it for themselves?

but its a fiasco cos this didn't happen over in germany?

and basically, they couldn't stop it raining?

absolute farce. the german reputation for organisation will never survive this bodyblow, surely.

[Crazyboy]

Hmmm, good point, my only gripe is with the transport situation. Admittedly, we could have arranged a taxi or something but we honestly thought there would be transport laid on, shuttle buses etc.

So yes you are right, my gripe isn't with the show itself, it was the fiasco outside after.

shuttle buses? shuttle buses? have you ever had shuttle buses arranged for you following UK boxing shows?

my experience of UK shows is that fans pretty much have to make their own way home? and, you know, think about it for themselves?

but its a fiasco cos this didn't happen over in germany?

and basically, they couldn't stop it raining?

absolute farce. the german reputation for organisation will never survive this bodyblow, surely.

lol, take it easy pal, no i don't know of any time that happens here, however you will also have to recognise that generally at a lot of venues there is a actually a way to get back to the town centre, at the arena there wasn't so i presumed (wrongly as it turned out) that they would cater for it.

your right though maybe i'm just pissed off that i got soaked and the fight was crap,

[Counter-puncher]

heh, taken in fine style my friend.

i did think you were on the verge of demanding helicopter transport to and from the venue plus a 100 metre long portable roof to permanently cover you from the weather, at one point, though.

i am guessing its the out-of-town location that was the main problem, then.

[mkirkhope]

Just out of interest - how did all the fans actually get TO the ground if there was no way of getting away from the ground at the end of the night. Sounds like people are saying there was not much public transport and its in the middle of nowhere. Did 50k people really get taxi's there, or was it just too late after the fight to get public transport from the nearest place?

[Crazyboy]

heh, taken in fine style my friend.

i did think you were on the verge of demanding helicopter transport to and from the venue plus a 100 metre long portable roof to permanently cover you from the weather, at one point, though.

i am guessing its the out-of-town location that was the main problem, then.

yeh it was and i suppose i did start ranting eh and i shouldn't, but that bloody rain made even the most paid back people pissed off lol......

Cheers for bringing me back down to earth though

[Crazyboy]

Just out of interest - how did all the fans actually get TO the ground if there was no way of getting away from the ground at the end of the night. Sounds like people are saying there was not much public transport and its in the middle of nowhere. Did 50k people really get taxi's there, or was it just too late after the fight to get public transport from the nearest place?

we got a cab there but weren't sure on the finishing time so didn't book a return, and again we genuinely thought we would have no problem getting back or finding a cab

[Counter-puncher]

heh, taken in fine style my friend.

i did think you were on the verge of demanding helicopter transport to and from the venue plus a 100 metre long portable roof to permanently cover you from the weather, at one point, though.

i am guessing its the out-of-town location that was the main problem, then.

yeh it was and i suppose i did start ranting eh and i shouldn't, but that bloody rain made even the most paid back people pissed off lol......

Cheers for bringing me back down to earth though

i am recalling all the tales of problems getting taxis after hatton fights at the MEN, or problems with the 02s location as a whole, or problems at the NEC after the mag 7, and i am thinking its fairly common, is all.

[mkirkhope]

From TV the stadium didn't look at capacity and there have been reports that there was a gate of only 30,000 - some way short of the 55,000 expected. Is this an indication that the fight didn't capture the imagination of the German public who normally turn out for the Klits in their numbers? Without the boost from the UK fans it would have been pretty empty.

I heard on the tv on the Saturday afternoon that it was 'not sold out yet' but they didn't mention figures.

Klitschko Chambers sold 51k tickets quite quickly so if the attendance is less than that then its very strange.

I said on the weigh-in thread that this fight wasn't catching fire as much as was being claimed here in the UK (and got absolutely slaughtered for that view) but I would still expect a 50k crowd at least for what Haye described as the 'biggest fight in boxing in 10 years'.

I thought it was interesting that Booth said the crowd was 75% from the UK. Given that the biggest figure I've heard for UK fans was 15,000, those numbers just don't add up.

It certainly sold well on TV here (upwards of 1m buys so the rumour mill is suggesting) and 15k travelling fans is close to extraordinary (is there a single fighter in the world who could go to a foreign country and take that many fans? I'm not counting 50k American Pacquiao fans who turn up in Texas as they've not travelled from his home country).

What is the reason for the low gate? Was Haye seen as less relevant an opponent than Chambers? Are the German fighting public starting to get bored of Klitschko fights? It's worth noting that the next Klitschko fight will be in his opponents backyard in Poland.

I agree with the TV sales and travelling fans stuff, but it maybe confirms my suspicions pre-fight that it was way over-hyped here in the UK whereas in other parts of the world it was maybe at the end of the day seen as quite a straightforward defense. There has to be a reason why 15k fans travelled from here but not many more than that would travel from their living room in Hamburg to the stadium (when they can get 51k germans for another recent defence). I've always said the fight was being made to be much bigger here than it actually was in reality (cue posts calling me an idiot from everyone!).