By Terence Dooley
Enzo Maccarinelli goes into the lion's den tonight in a bid to relaunch a career that has floundered since a March 2008 loss to David Haye. Haye, who hammered Enzo to defeat in two rounds, has revealed that Enzo wished him well prior to David's WBA heavyweight title defence against John Ruiz and has reciprocated the gesture by telling Enzo he can still become a major force on the cruiserweight scene.
Enzo takes on Alexander Kotlobay in Saint Petersburg, Russia for the vacant EBU cruiserweight title. His 18-1-1 (12) Russian opponent is in a good run of form and has shown heavy hands of late. Haye, though, feels that Enzo’s quality will shine through in this one.
“I hope Enzo wins tonight because he deserves it,” said Haye, when talking to The South Wales Evening Post. “He is a good pro and winning the European title would put him right back into the mix among the world contenders. He has the talent to become a world champion again, no doubt about it.”
Enzo, 31-4 (24 early), has scored back-to-back first round wins over Krisztian Jaksi and Zoltan Czekus yet his last title action saw him destroyed in three rounds by Denis Lebedev. 'Big Mac' had previously lost in the ninth round to Ola Afolabi after building up an early lead. Three stoppage losses in his last six fights have left Enzo staring into the abyss and he is now in a must-win situation.
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