It looks very much, barring injury, David Haye?s boxing career is set to get underway again.
After being absent from the ring since 2012 victory over Dereck Chisora, we?d been warned that at a press conference to be held this morning we?d be given information about his comeback fight and that is exactly as it turned out.
It was announced that Haye would be taking on the Australian heavyweight Mark de Mori on 16th January 2016.
De Mori, two years younger than the thirty-five year old Haye, is a competent heavyweight having lost on once in his thirty-three fights. Of his twenty-nine victories, twenty six have been inside the distance, although we can?t vouch for the class of some of his opponents.
With the fight having been announced Haye faced a barrage of cameras before remarking about his comeback,
?It feels really good to be back. Physically, I am firing on all cylinders. I have been training with Shane McGuigan and I have got a new lease of life. I have been in the gym working hard and I needed a change from the injuries I got. Since I teamed up with Shane, I have gone from strength to strength. Everything has gone through there roof and I feel like a young fighter even at 35.
?I am looking forward to getting in the ring and hearing the fans get excited. I saw he is ranked in the top 10 and he was giving it large. We will see on 16 January whether the ‘Dominator’ can dominate the Hayemaker. I very much doubt that but there may be some question marks because i have been out of the ring for so long.
?Muhammad Ali had three-and-a-half years out and he lost on his return but that was against Joe Frazier. This guy is no Frazier. Wladimir Klitschko came back after four years out but they go their titles back and I want to do that same. Boxing is in a really healthy place.
?I could have picked an easier opponent. I could have fought someone who?d been knocked out a couple of time but I wanted to give people someone to get excited about. He is top 10. I don?t want to fight complete nobodies. I believe if I can do what I?m doing in the gym on 16 January then I?ll be better than I used to be.?
Fighting words from Haye there, but what did his trainer, Shane McGuigam have to say about his famous charge?
?We started working together and gelled straight away. David is definitely back and firing on all cylinders. It is now about making sure he can get through the training camps and come out unscathed.?
And as for Mark de Mori, the Australian, now living in Croatia, had this to say,
?One thing his team may not know is that 90% of my career I trained in my dad?s garage. I had a few fights with my wife in my corner. That?s the guy they have seen on Youtube and are preparing for. But I?ve lived in Croatia for the last two years and have gone from training in my garage to training with a coach who is a two-time Olympian. So I?ve gone from self-trained guy with my wife wiping blood from my face to being properly trained. My strength has gone to another level.
?I haven?t been at top or fought the likes of David Haye. But I?m glad it?s finally happening. I?m 33. People might say that?s a little old. But 30s are prime time for heavyweights. Every dog has its day and it takes someone like me, who’s a bit sick in the head, who doesn?t believe he?s a sacrificial lamb, to take David, a millionaire, the extra mile and make him think ‘I?m famous do I really need this?’
?All empires crumble eventually, like the Roman Empire. What it takes to end an empire, like David’s, is not always a better man or a stronger man but sometimes some guy who just turns up and believes and refuses to lay down and read the script.?
It could be a good scrap, put the date in your diaries, it?s in mine!
Haye’s ring Return Date Confirmed!
