By Frank Warren

While punters are probably hedging their bets over the outcome of Garcia v Thurman, the bookies have certainly nailed their colours to the mast in pricing up the match between David Haye and Tony Bellew at London’s 02 Arena this weekend.

Taking a glance at one major betting site, they have Haye pretty much nailed on at 1/6, the sort of price that tempts the high rollers into buying money.

As it goes, there appears to be a few racing certainties on the card, if the odds are anything to go by. In all bar one of the undercard fights listed, the home fighter is heavily odds on to the tune of 1/20, 1/100, 1/100 and 1/7. The narrowest price for a blue corner boxer is 4/9.

If you concur with the thinking that the bookies are rarely wrong – and you’ve got a few quid spare to make it worthwhile – then there is a sure-fire accumulator there.

Put on a few bob and you might even get enough back to cover the cost of the pay-per-view!

I know from experience, however, that boxing doesn’t always run true to form – and obviously I fancy Derry Mathews to bust a few coupons on the night – but I do believe the odds on David Haye are a true reflection of how this fight is likely to pan out.

There has been a lot of noise made this week, some of it not to everyone’s taste, but as far as Haye is concerned, all he is interested in at the moment is drumming up the pay-per-view and that is what he is doing.

The Board of Control will huff and puff about it, but if they really wanted to do something, they could. They won’t though.

Without all the sniping and snarling this fight wouldn’t really capture the imagination of the public. If these two were to play nicely, would people be parting with their hard-earned to watch it?

Unless Bellew really catches him, I can’t see what chance he has got and that is also assuming that he can transfer his power up a weight division.

Bellew is a screamer and shouter who likes to bully and intimidate his opponents, so it will be interesting to see how he reacts when someone like Haye really puts it back on him.

Bellew appears to be basing his hopes on the fact that Haye hasn’t been tested for a number of years or that his party lifestyle will catch up with him.

Haye is simply a showman who knows how to play the game.

I have seen him a couple of times in the gym and he is fit and firing. Forget about his Miami vices, he will have done what he needs to do to be in top condition.

Haye is no mug and the big thing about him is, if he fancies the job, his opponent has got a big problem.

It is not like he is shopworn either or has had the stuffing knocked out of him in any of his fights. He has got enough left in the tank to cater for the job in hand.

For me, there is only one winner, who will then be ready and more than able to resume heavy duties.

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