David Haye Needs To Take Heed of Bob Marley's Advice

By Terence Dooley

In his song Small Axe, Bob Marley uses the Jamaican proverb ‘a small axe can cut down the big tree’ to present a metaphorical image of how individuals can stand united against the malevolent state and chop it down through sheer weight of individual protest, this theory turned out to be nonsensical.  However, David Haye could well do with listening to this song ahead of his WBA title fight with Nikolay Valuev at the Arena Nürnberger Versicherung in Nuremberg on Saturday night.

Haye, 29, and Nikolay first came face-to-chest thirteen-years ago.  David, only sixteen at the time, was on-hand as a spectator when the 7’ Russian twice fought in London during 1996.  No one could have imagined that their paths would meet in the professional ring but they are now set to collide before the German, pro-Valuev crowd. 

Throughout the build-up Haye, 22-1 (21 KO’s), has divided opinion with his boastful words and exaggerated antics, he is, ironically, building himself into a larger-than-life caricature ahead of this fight, which could be the whole point of the pre-fight ballyhoo. 

In some quarters, Haye is being treated like a war criminal, rather than a boxer seeking to hype a contest.  Others think that David is pushing the right buttons ahead of his Nuremberg trial, getting Valuev riled ahead of this pressure encounter.  Whatever, Haye's antics have sold this fight ten times over; even his critics acknowledge that Haye’s conduct has made this fight a little bit more enticing.

Valuev hasn't said much but at 7’2 and roughly 310lb the 36-year-old Russian does not need to intimidate using excessive verbiage. Put it this way - if he turned up at your house to collect a debt you'd hand the money over immediately, and apologise profusely for the delay.  Nikolay also has decent skills, underrated power and can cut the ring down, which will be a vital factor in this fight.

Now, back to Bob Marley; common thinking states that Haye needs to bomb in and bomb out again, hitting Valuev with fast shots and getting out of range before Valuev can reply.  This is fairly sound advice.  Still, how quick will Haye be when it comes to getting out off the pocket?  And can he do this without taking a shot or two away with him? 

Valuev is not quite Roy Jones when it comes to moving his feet but he is fairly decent at cutting off the ring.  Sure, he may look awkward but so did ‘Big’ George Foreman, who was masterful at cutting the ring down.  George, like Valuev, looked cumbersome but he was grimly effective.  Muhammad Ali compared Foreman to a screen monster and he was right on two counts - George lumbered forward slowly but he would get you in the end.  Consequently, expect Valuev to be on Haye the moment David moves out off range.

Instead, Haye may be best served by hanging in-close.  Valuev will no doubt try to maul but Haye needs to be close to Valuev's trunk in order to make the small cuts that will eventually bring the giant down.  If Haye can work on the inside he will rake Valuev's body, bringing Nikolay’s guard down to leave a clear target for the head - "Attack the body and the head goes with it", a tactic thought up by Cuba Gooding Junior at the climax of the film Gladiator (the boxing movie, not the swords-and-sandals epic). 

Indeed, Haye may be safer on the inside, mauling aside, he is less likely to get clipped on the temple by the sort of winged shot that put him in trouble against Lolenga Mock and Jean Marc Mormeck.  Valuev is not an inside fighter by any means; Haye, however, did well on the inside against Mormeck, landing chopping left hooks to the body of the then-cruiserweight king.  Back-pedalling would be a dangerous move in this fight as the 'Beast from the East' will be on top of Haye before the Londoner can make it to safety.

Valuev is hardly a behemoth in terms of heavyweight standing, either; the WBA heavyweight belt has been a fringe title for a few years now.  In fact, Valuev first won the title by defeating John Ruiz, one of the worst heavyweight 'champs' the world has ever seen; Nikolay later lost that title to Ruslan Chagaev, who is a decent, not brilliant, boxer.  Nikolay's current reign came about after the WBA made him and Ruiz fight a rematch for the vacant title. 

The bottom line: Valuev is not that good.  Tidy, yes, effective, hell yes, but he has been taken the distance by men like Jean Francois Bergeron, Pedro Daniel Franco and he was lucky to get the nod over Evander Holyfield, who is a million-years-old and, like Haye, a former cruiserweight.  Valuev's tag of 'Goliath' relates to his size, not his standing, as the original Goliath was undefeated heading into his war with David, who admittedly fought at long range in that one, but styles make fights.

If Haye can get close, unload, stun Valuev and then step to the side he will be able to hit Valuev with enough of those small axe-blows to confound expectation and stop his man.  Valuev has never been floored but he will be hit hard and often in this fight; he may be taken out whilst still standing. 

Also, Haye has gone on record as saying he likes fighting bigger guys.  His first-round win over Alexander Gurov saw him take on a 6’ 5½’’ giant of a cruiserweight.  Haye enjoyed punching upwards that night, and ditto when he defeated Enzo Maccarinelli to unify the majority of the cruiserweight belts.  Haye's biggest recent struggle came against Mormeck, a short, compact powerhouse of a man, who presented Haye with a limited target.  Valuev, on the other hand, has acres of target area for Haye to aim at.

On the other hand, Haye has been floored by lesser men, Lolenga Mock in 2003 springs to mind, so there is a chance that Valuev could bomb the challenger out and leave the British fans deflated and depressed.  Valuev is a spiteful, rather than percussive, hitter and Haye has shown a vulnerability when hit on the temple.  This vulnerability, however, mostly came to the fore at cruiserweight, sure Haye was stunned by Barrett but there was lot made of that moment of madness.

Still, this vulnerability is a problem and it is also coupled with the stamina issue that has dogged Haye since he blew a gasket against Carl Thompson in 2004.  Haye was a callow 24-year-old going into that fight and he did not take Thompson as seriously as he should have done.  In the eyes of many this fight, along with the Mock and Mormeck ones, stands out on Haye's ledger as a clear sign that he will buckle should his attacks not carry him through to a quick win - although this thinking is flawed, overturned by the Mormeck performance.

The most important displays on Haye's record came in the Mormeck win and in his sole 12-rounder, a victory over Ismail Abdoul in Manchester in 2006.  Haye’s pace was pedestrian that night in Altrincham, you could see that he was boxing to a plan; he rationed his shots, put the rounds away and followed Adam Booth's advice.  It was a turning point in Haye's career, the night he started to be a bit more Lennox Lewis and a little less Nigel Benn, and, although it disappointed, the contest with Abdoul was a sign that David can listen to advice, work a man over to the body and head, and pace the rounds.

Valuev, 50-1 (34 early), will not fight Haye at a million miles per hour, nor will he top Haye for athleticism and speed.  For Valuev this one hinges on walking his man down and breaking his will.  For Haye, perhaps, the key could be to stay close and work his man over on the inside, softening him up and taking him out, which I think he can do, and he will do this in or around the seventh or eighth round to capture the WBA crown.

Coda:

So, what about Bob?  Haye could do worse than enter the ring to "Small Axe." Think about it; Lennox Lewis' ring entrance music often set the scene for his wins. In the Holyfield fights he came out to "Crazy Baldheads," and he did eventually drive Holyfield out off the town. For the Rahman rematch he came out to "Payback," and got some in the fourth round, and in his win over Tyson he, again, came out to "Crazy Baldheads" and bashed Tyson's in over eight clinical rounds. 

You could always gauge Lewis' mood by his entrance music.  If Haye comes out to "Small Axe" then you know he is in the zone tactically, at least according to my reading of the fight, and you can sit back, relax, and watch him go about his work in a disciplined, controlled, and ultimately victorious manner.