Boxing Betting / Ralph Ellis / 17 April 2009 / Leave a comment

David Haye has been using bold tactics in the build-up to his June heavyweight title bout against Wladimir Klitschko, says Ralph Ellis. But can the man who bids to be Britain's next world champions deliver the goods in the ring?

A picture, they say, paints a thousand words. If that's the case, then the ones in the papers this morning of David Haye and Wladimir Klitschko have overwritten. They say a whole book of something like 100,000 words about the brash attitude of the Londoner who wants to be Britain's next World Heavyweight Champion.

There's Klitschko, all six feet six inches of him, in casual jacket wearing his three world title belts, looking cool and classy. And then there's Haye in a tasteless black t-shirt with an even more tasteless picture of him holding up the heads of both Wladimir and his brother Vitali with their bleeding corpses on the floor of the ring.

As a stunt to grab attention it's in the best traditions of a sport that often plumbs the depths of taste when it comes to pre-fight press conferences. This one was held in Germany to promote the fight against the IBF and WBO title holder on June 20 in Gelsenkirchen and shocked the local audience. The two Ukrainian brothers are based in Germany and popular with the fans there. One national newspaper immediately called it a "Boxing Scandal".

But for Haye it was very clearly an attempt to wind up his giant Ukrainian opponent at the start of a three-fight sequence in which the 28-year-old from Bermondsey will try to take their crowns.

He was unrepentant and delivered the trash talk to go with the trash picture. "I came here not just with Wladimir's head but also with Vitali's to tell him I am coming after his whole family," he said. "Could I take both of them out on the same night? Yes, I will get Vitali to throw in the towel to save him. Maybe Vitali can jump in to save his brother but he looks old and grey now. My t-shirt was to get attention and show I'm serious, and it worked."

It's a bold tactic, because the one thing about words is you have to back them up with deeds. Haye is already under enormous pressure for the first fight in his "family" series because unless he beats Wladimir his prospects of going on to fight Vitali are next to nil. But in fact, however juvenile the stunts, his only prospect of success is to go into the ring with that provocative attitude and draw Vladimir into a faster and more furious contest.

Haye has clearly understood that need, and it makes the current price of [2.86] for him to win on June 20 look very tempting.

Five things you might not know about David Haye

1. He comes from Bermondsey, South London, his full name is David Deron Haye - and he was born in 1980 with a black eye and clenched fists

2. He was silver medallist in the heavyweight division in the 2001 world amateur championships, losing to Cuba's Odlanier Solis in the final

3. His all-time favourite boxer is Muhammed Ali - but he names Nigel Benn v Gerald McClellan as the best ever fight

4. His training camp is based in Kyrenia in Northern Cyprus

5. He formed Hayemaker Boxing with Adam Booth to promote his own fights and others - and now has a stable of 15 other fighters. Their motto is: Entertainment. Excitement. Competition. Risks. Knockouts. Confidence. Success. All in the name of sport. All in the name of Hayemaker Boxing.