EXCLUSIVE David Haye on the haters and ‘secret fans’

david haye injury

AS a young professional boxing hopeful, David Haye was not that much different from his peers, despite a World amateur silver medal marking him out as a prospect to watch. He still keenly craved the approval of the fans and would eagerly visit boxing forums to find reviews of and reaction to his most recent fight, even engaging with the punters. While Haye still peruses the online message boards to this day, he no longer contributes.

โ€œI love the banter,โ€ he tells me, as we sit in his gym in Vauxhall, London. โ€œI used to write as myself when I was younger, up to my 10th-11th fight. I used to try to justify my performances, like I needed their approval. Iโ€™d be like, โ€˜I went out and beat this guy really well; what do you think?โ€™ โ€˜Nah, the guy was crap.โ€™ โ€˜But he hadnโ€™t lost before.โ€™ โ€˜Yeah but heโ€™d never fought anybody.โ€™ People always used to say, โ€˜Youโ€™ll never gonna be cruiserweight champion because if you canโ€™t beat Carl Thompson, how you gonna beat Jean-Marc Mormeck?โ€™ Then I beat Mormeck: โ€˜Oh he was over the hill, you wouldnโ€™t beat Enzo Maccarinelli, heโ€™s young etcโ€™, beat him, โ€˜Youโ€™re never gonna be heavyweight champion, you wonโ€™t beat Nikolai Valuev, heโ€™s too big and youโ€™re only a pumped-up cruiserweight,โ€™ beat Valuev and then โ€˜Valuev was too slow.โ€™ Then โ€˜Youโ€™re not gonna beat Klitschkoโ€™, lost on points, โ€˜Ah, I always knew you was s***, Iโ€™ve been saying it since 2002.โ€™

โ€œAll these people who were saying these things were paying to see it. You canโ€™t please everyone. People are moaning about Floyd Mayweather but heโ€™s done nothing wrong in his career. Heโ€™s beat every single man heโ€™s ever faced and people say heโ€™s a cherry-picker and only fights people when theyโ€™re finished. Really? Heโ€™s not young himself. โ€˜Manny Pacquiaoโ€™s over the hillโ€™โ€ฆ theyโ€™re about the same age!โ€

Haye is one of the gameโ€™s finest self-marketers and is acutely aware that a desire to see a boxer lose is much more likely to increase that fighterโ€™s bank balance than widespread indifference.

โ€œAs long as youโ€™re interesting to people, as long as youโ€™re relevant, thatโ€™s all that matters,โ€ he stated. โ€œAs long people are taking time to log into a forum and write something, even if itโ€™s to say youโ€™re the worst fighter theyโ€™ve ever seen in their life, they hope they never see you again, as long as theyโ€™re writing about you, they donโ€™t realise, theyโ€™re a secret fan. If I buy a ticket to see the Spice Girls and I only went there to see how terrible they were and slag them off, Iโ€™m a fan. They donโ€™t realise that. Without people like that I wouldnโ€™t be here today. I love my haters as much as my supporters. I need them arguing with each other because if everyone loved David theyโ€™d get bored of that and have nothing to say in the pub. I talk to fighters who, like me when I was younger, they take it really personal when reviews donโ€™t go their way. It doesnโ€™t matter, just be happy youโ€™re in the magazine. I donโ€™t complain but Iโ€™d probably complain if they werenโ€™t writing about me!โ€

And, to clarify, David Haye has never bought a ticket to see the Spice Girls, though he would not be drawn on whether he has ever been given a ticket to the ‘Girl Power’ act at no charge.

#HayeDay returns to The O2 on May 21, tickets are available on general sale now via AXS.com.

Share Page