By Mark Vester
David Haye (20-1, 19KOs), who recently won the WBA/WBC cruiserweight titles with a seven-round knockout of Jean-Marc Mormeck, tells IC SouthLondon that he's ready to move back up to heavyweight and he is wants to face IBF heavyweight champion Wladimir Klitschko as soon as possible.
"This is what I've aimed for since I was a little kid - to be recognized as the number one fighter in the world and I'm there now and have cleaned up the division. Now it's time to do the same at heavyweight," Haye said. "I'll fight anybody - I would fight the IBF champion Wladimir Klitschko if it was available for my next fight. I don't want to duck and dive and pick and choose."
Haye knows the reality of his situation, he's unlikely to land a shot at Klitschko unless he puts himself in position to force the fight.
"I'm not going to get a heavyweight title shot straight off the bat. I've got to work my way up the rankings like I did at cruiserweight. You can't just sit back and start demanding: 'I want Klitschko next' and expect him to fight me - it doesn't work like that. I've got to become the mandatory challenger. Like I did for Mormeck," Haye said.
While many fans, especially those in the UK, would like to see him face WBO crusierweight champ Enzo Maccarinelli. Haye says that he can barely make the weight and is not willing put himself through the same hell that he went through in his training camp for Mormeck.
"It's definitely my last fight at cruiserweight. I haven't had a proper meal in 17 weeks. I've been in camp 17 weeks solid, with no break, and I just barely made the weight. We said to everybody how the weight was great but it was an exaggeration to play mind games with Mormeck. I was getting leg cramps warming up for the fight and when I got knocked down in the fourth round my legs completely went. They got hollow in the lead-up to this," Haye said.
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