DAVID HAYE admits his rivalry with Tony Bellew has gotten too personal, but has vowed to bring their grudge to a conclusive end this weekend.
The pair were speaking at the final press conference before their bitter heavyweight clash at the O2 Arena in London on Saturday.
Countless barbs have been traded – and even a cuffing left hook – prior to their meeting this weekend and the former two-weight king has let it get to him.
“Unfortunately for Bellew, he said he wouldn’t beat the old David Haye but the new David Haye is better than the old one,” he said.
“Knocking him down for 10 seconds isn’t exciting for me. He’s got under my skin, chased me for a year and half. If he wants to make things personal, I’ll make sure he’ll never do that again. I hope he keeps getting up. Make sure your coach doesn’t throw in the towel. This is the last day for you.”
This press conference was the tamest one between them yet, but Bellew referenced the alleged achilles injury Haye had been struggling with.
He travelled to Munich to see a specialist, but later admitted this was all a ruse to try and throw people off.
Regardless, Bellew doesn’t want Haye to refer to any potential injuries after the fight.
“The main thing is no excuses, it’s been put out in the media. No excuses whatsoever. We all get sore, we all get bumps, it’s called boxing I don’t want to hear any excuses at all,” he said.
“I don’t pretend to be anything, what you see is what you get. Everything I say is true, it’s just a fact. I’ve never made anything up, I’m a straight-shooter, I’m not the guy surrounded by scumbags and idiots, that’s your guy. I’m not the one surrounded by cricket match fixers.
“Nobody’s throwing in a towel, we don’t have white flags round here.”
