Look out Tyson Fury, the Hayemaker is back.
On Saturday night at the O2 in London, David Haye made his return to boxing after a three and a half year absence through injury with an emphatic first round victory of Australian heavyweight Mark De Mori.
Truthfully it wasn’t much of a competition, as Haye rarely looked to be in trouble, nor as if he needed to exert much effort.
Coming out in the first round in his regular wide-legged stance, Haye wasted no time as he threw heavy punches from the off. De Mori, tagged early on, looked to be overwhelmed, showing minimal movement and allowing himself to be backed into the corners on several occasions.
Much had been made of Haye’s heavier-than-usual weight, but the Londoner made it clear early on that it wouldn’t be a detriment. Weighing in at 16st 3 (227 lbs), Haye said before the bout that the weight represented a change of tactic. No longer looking to be the much faster fighter against heavier men, Haye instead wanted to be able to stand and trade.
His physique was certainly different, looking far from his previously ‘ripped’ self, but the weight gain seemed to have the desired effect as the win was Haye’s fastest knockout since a victory over Tomasz Bonin in 2007.
The other main talking point leading up to the event was Haye’s lay-off and the potential ring-rust, which certainly didn’t appear to affect him as he sauntered to the ring. Haye appeared very much in his element, grinning from ear to ear as he took in the fans appreciation.
That confidence carried over, and Haye flashed a smirk as he connected with his first big punch.
The finish came at 2 minutes 11 seconds of the first round, as Haye backed De Mori against the ropes and teed off, throwing combinations of rights and lefts. As De Mori dropped his guard, Haye threw an overhand right that buckled the Australian, before Haye landed two more big blows to have De Mori asleep before he hit the canvas.
De Mori laid on the mat for several minutes after the bout, having oxygen administered until he was deemed fit to stand unaided.
After the fight, Haye was interviewed in the ring to discuss his new build and his return.
“It’s been absolutely amazing,” said Haye. “I’d like to thank each and every fan who come out tonight. A lot of people gave up on me with my physical state in the last two years…I’m finally back, I feel I’m better than I’ve ever been, I’m punching harder.
“I don’t believe any Heavyweight can take these punches…I can’t see any Heavyweight taking that type of abuse, genuinely. Who can take those shots for ten rounds? I’m not an easy guy to hit also, so how do you go about beating that?
When asked about what’s in his future, Haye made it clear who he had on his mind, and it wasn’t necessarily Heavyweight champion Tyson Fury.
“Tyson Fury was pretty vocal about never wanting to fight me,” Haye said. “I don’t worry about him. I think a fight between myself and Anthony Joshua would be much bigger. I believe that fight could be made later on in the year, if his teams interested.”
“I’m in good shape, punching hard. He’s in good shape, punching hard. I think he’s great. He’s big, strong, he punches hard, he looks the part. He ticks all the boxes. That’s the type of fight I want, that’ll get me up. That’s why I’m back in boxing: for the big fights. That’s why I’m back.”
Whether Haye gets the fight against the significantly less experienced Joshua is yet to be seen, but there is no doubt that if it were to happen, then that fight has the possibility to be one of the biggest British boxing events of all time.
Below is the play-by-play of David Haye vs. Mark De Mori:
Round One:
Haye comes out orthodox, and starts off with pawing left jabs, before immediately throwing a powerful left hook. Haye shows good head movement, and gets through with a good 1-2 combination. Haye starts to tee off, with De Mori trying to block. Haye is using his old wide legged stance, bouncing in and out, before throwing a big right hand that misses. Haye throwing with real intent around the 1 minute 40 mark.
Haye beginning to stalk forward, and De Mori looks tentative. Haye landing big shots and smirking at his opponent, backing De Mori against the ropes. De Mori looks nervous here, and Haye knows it. Big left puts De Mori on the ropes. De Mori not showing much here. Haye lands a one-two combo, throws the overhand right and puts De Mori’s asleep. Fights over, the Hayemaker is back.
David Haye wins by Knockout at 2:11 in Round One.
