"I don't like him personally and I don't like him in a boxing sense. There is nothing that he does that I like. I don't like his jab, jab, grab technique. I don't think any boxing fan around the world likes Wladimir's fights. If you go back in the ten years of him fighting, you can only pick out one fight that was entertaining and that was when he fought Samuel Peter the first time and got pushed all over the ring, getting knocked down 5-6 times. That's the only one you can say is mildly entertaining. The rest of them were boring. If I wasn't a boxer and just a boxing fan, he would be one of the last people that I would watch. And as a person, I've listened to some of the crap that he said, like I've been running from him or I've been ducking him, and then he decides to fight Dereck Chisora and then he gets another injury after another injury. I don't like him as a person; I don't like how he does business. I can't wait to see him unconscious, twitching on the canvas," stated an animated WBA heavyweight champion David Haye, who was excited to talk about his highly-anticipated showdown with Waldimir Klitschko. Check out what he had to say about the fight, Wladimir Klitschko, and much more.
JA: Great to be speaking with you. You must be really excited about finally getting the opportunity of getting in the ring with Wladimir Klitschko.
DH: I'm really excited about this fight because this is the fight that I've wanted for a long time now. A lot of people wanted to see the fight and for a time, I thought he genuinely didn't want to fight me and straight up avoided me, but now that he's signed the paper, we got the fight the world wants to see.
JA: What do you think held up the fight?
DH: I don't know; you have to ask him that. I've been ready to fight. I really think that he wanted to fight a few other guys before he fought me. He wanted the contract to be so far in his favor that it was never going to happen that way. He obviously has seen the light by getting paid peanuts compared to fighting me.
JA: How will you deal with Wladimir's jab. Obviously that will be Wladimir's focal point going into the fight and...
DH: (Cutting In) He's going to try to use his jab, but whether or not it will be affective will be a whole 'nother story. I've seen him on many occasions land jabs on his overweight opponents, time and time again. I'm athletic and I don't allow people to hit me with jabs just like that. If he was going to land the jab on me, he would really have to earn it. I don't want to go out there and have a jabbing contest with him; that's not what this fight's about. I'm going to make him fight. It's been a long time since you saw Wladimir Klitschko actually get into a fight and throw punches with mean intentions. I plan on doing that from the start of the fight. My goal is to put him in his un-comfort zone and that's what I'm going to do from the opening bell on.
JA: I've talked to Emanuel Steward and he told me that with all the hype, emotion, and with both fighters chins being suspect, he doesn't see the fight going very long. Do you agree with Emanuel's observation?
DH: Yeah, I do see the fight being explosive and quick. I don't think Wladimir can hold up to the type of heat that I will be dishing out on him. I've seen him make some mistakes in past fights. Whenever someone puts pressure on him, instead of him jabbing, jabbing, jabbing, he hits the canvas pretty quickly. The reason why he's been put on the floor 11 times in his career is because whenever he gets hit with something hard, he hits the floor; that's his instant response.
JA: Is this fight personal to you?
DH: Every fight is personal to me, but this one is definitely something I've wanted for a long time, it's been seasoned for quite a long time, and it's been marinating for quite a long time now, and it's the right time to serve the fight up to the fans.
JA: It's been a long time since England has had a universally recognized champion, Lennox Lewis being the last. How important is it for you to bring the title back to England?
DH: It would mean everything to me and I've gotten a lot of support in the UK. Everyone wants me to be the next undisputed champ and Wladimir has had his chance. He's been champion for many years. I consider him fully responsible for killing the heavyweight division. His jab, jab, jab, hold time and time again [style], in my opinion, has hurt the heavyweight division and it's my job to fix it and clean up the division and bring boxing back to the days where you get two guys in the ring being explosive and throwing punches. I can't wait to get in the ring and see Wladimir Klitschko standing across from me.
JA: I did an interview with Emanuel Steward and he told me that Wladimir is superior in every single category of boxing over you. Your response?
DH: Well, Emanuel has never been up close to me, whether it would be in training or watching me fight live. Obviously he's seen me on TV and he's made his assumption being that he is with Wladimir. If Emanuel Steward had trained with me or seen some of my fights live, he would change his opinion of me. If Emanuel is telling Wladimir that he is faster than David Haye, or you're more athletic than David Haye, if he's telling Wladimir this, HE'S LYING TO HIS FACE!
JA: Will you be changing anything up for this fight compared to fights in the past?
DH: I'm going to be the same old David Haye and I'm going to go out there and do my thing. I know that I'm faster than Wladimir Klitschko and I hit harder than Wladimir. A lot of people may not think that, but I do hit harder than he does. You will see on fight night that Wladimir has feasted on these fat bums long enough now. Wladimir has been accustomed to fighting these caliber of fighters and it's a shame. I will go out there and do what I do best and that is chucking haymakers from the very first bell.
JA: Honestly and openly, what do you think of Wladimir as a fighter? Do you like him personally at all?
DH: (Cutting In) I don't like him personally and I don't like him in a boxing sense. There is nothing that he does that I like. I don't like his jab, jab, grab technique. I don't think any boxing fan around the world likes Wladimir's fights. If you go back in the ten years of him fighting, you can only pick out one fight that was entertaining and that was when he fought Samuel Peter the first time and got pushed all over the ring, getting knocked down 5-6 times. That's the only one you can say is mildly entertaining. The rest of them were boring. If I wasn't a boxer and just a boxing fan, he would be one of the last people that I would watch. And as a person, I've listened to some of the crap that he said, like I've been running from him or I've been ducking him, and then he decides to fight Dereck Chisora and then he gets another injury after another injury. I don't like him as a person; I don't like how he does business. I can't wait to see him unconscious, twitching on the canvas.
JA: Have you ever gone into a fight not liking someone as much as you don't like Wladimir?
DH: I would say that my hatred is at an all-time high and I'm looking to take it out on his big head.
JA: Do you think that it could work against you?
DH: I don't think it's going to work against me; it's going to work against him. If you think that I'm sharp in normal fights, how about when I'm really trying to do some damage with every shot I throw? It's going to be a complete and utter shock to his nervous system when the punches start landing. He will realize that he's out of his debt.
JA: David, you have a ton of fans around the world. Is there anything that you want to say to them or your sponsors in closing?
DH: Yeah, definitely. Where I have my gym in South London, England, it's a company called the Park Plaza hotel chain. They've been kind enough to set up a gym in the back of their hotel and that's where I do my training, so a big shout out to the Park Plaza Hotel. All the fans around the world, stay tuned because you have an amazing fight coming up between me and Wladimir Klitschko and let's hope Wladimir don't bitch out trying to claim another injury. I think that he's going to man up for once and get in the ring and it will be war.