(BTW, plesase delete if this is too many topics, but I was about 20 feet from the ring, so I thought I'd give my own take. Like I said, no biggie if you guys wanna remove it):
Having splurged far too much dosh on an extended weekend, I have to say that this was one of the best nights of my entire puff, & also the only time in my life I have ever felt proud to be British.
It was like fuckin' Agincourt* in there; 4 1/2 thousand screaming Frenchman -- about a hundred Englishmen & me & the missus: the occasional "Gaawwwwwwwwwwwwwhhhhhhhhhhhnnnnnnnnnn Daaaaaaaaavvvvvvvvvveeeeeeee!!!" drowned in a sea of "Mor-meck! Mor-meck!"'s.
First off, Haye is far too wide open. He thought he could spin away from Mormeck's attacks & ate right hands over his low left, all fricking night.
And the knockdown he suffered was in no way a slip. I can see why you'd think that, but when Haye went down his face looked finished; he was actually hurt & one ankle turned underneath him as his legs went in two different directions. Every single one of l'homeboys went fuckin' nuts. My girlf grabbed me & started making squeaking noises; I went hoarse screaming "GRAB HIM DAVID!!!! GRAB HOLD OF HIM!!! LIKE AN OCTOPUS!!!!!"
Mormeck was fit as anything; Giachetti primed him with the perfect plan: he hardly jabbed all night to take away Haye's straight right, & snapped Haye's head back with his own right almost at will at times.
Haye's jab dominated the early action, though, & the body shots Haye whipped into Mormeck's midsection, I swear, sounded like the firmament coming apart. Mormeck physically shrunk from those blows. They were what won David the fight.
The round after getting dropped, I could see Haye begin to sit down on his punches for what appeared to be the first time, really loading up & letting fly; an uppercut sent a shiver through JMM at the end of the sixth & he actually gave a little shake of his head as he walked back to his corner.
As to the finish, Mormeck seemed to suddenly feel the impacts in the sixth, then I think the last right uppercut really fvcked him up. The overhand right (from where I was sitting) landed as Mormeck had already started his journey downwards.
Also, after the fight I was standing chatting with the bloke from the South London Guardian. A dignified silver haired gent wandered past.
I said, "Is that James Lawton from the Observer?"
My new friend told me, yes, that it was James Lawton from the Observer.
I wandered over, flushed with patriotic endorphins & clapped the boy on the back, pumping his hand profusely as I went: "Nice one, Mr Lawton! THanks for coming over."
"I am Jeff Powell", the man replied, all dignity. "Although we both do have silver hair."
Oops.
Fvcking great night, though. Haye's after party was... Something else, as well.
*: Except for the scarcity of longbows, blokes in plate armour, big fvcking horses, a hil, a vineyard & piles of dead bodies afterwards. It was a metaphor. Sorry.
Ringside from France
Great take on the fight, chuffed to bits for you to have been there, nothing quite like it is there, when we win that is.
Enjoy you won't come down off that cloud for a while
This time next year your bird will be saying do you have to talk about Mormeck/Haye all the time.
It will be like uncle albert in Only fools and horses as you say, "did i tell you about the night i saw Haye win in France"
I talked about Lewis/Holyfield 1 and 2 for about 3 years afterwards.
Sounds like a great night wish I had been there but great that some brits have a night to remember
Enjoy you won't come down off that cloud for a while
This time next year your bird will be saying do you have to talk about Mormeck/Haye all the time.
It will be like uncle albert in Only fools and horses as you say, "did i tell you about the night i saw Haye win in France"
I talked about Lewis/Holyfield 1 and 2 for about 3 years afterwards.
Sounds like a great night wish I had been there but great that some brits have a night to remember
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Datsue
- Heavyweight
Thanks Global, Chesh, Flav.
Just thought I'd get it in while it's still fresh in my head like.
@GLOBALBOX: I'm already like Uncle Albert. I have told about eleventy trillion people today, & have taken to stroking the caparison with my seat number on it that I stole as we walked out. I may get it surgically grafted to my head, I don't know.
One last thing: The bloke from La Parisienne is a really great dude, an Algerian who has a fuckin' wicked sense of humour.
"Your boy has an awful haircut, but he is very good at kicking the arse," were his last words to me.
Which just about sums it up, I think...
Just thought I'd get it in while it's still fresh in my head like.
@GLOBALBOX: I'm already like Uncle Albert. I have told about eleventy trillion people today, & have taken to stroking the caparison with my seat number on it that I stole as we walked out. I may get it surgically grafted to my head, I don't know.
One last thing: The bloke from La Parisienne is a really great dude, an Algerian who has a fuckin' wicked sense of humour.
"Your boy has an awful haircut, but he is very good at kicking the arse," were his last words to me.
Which just about sums it up, I think...