MEAN & CLEAN
Haye: Last 20 years are crucial
MIKE TYSON’S eagerly anticipated return to the ring against Roy Jones Jr will be won by whichever one of them has led the cleanest life over the last two decades.
That’s according to former heavyweight world champion David Haye ( r i ght) who idolised Jones when he was growing up.
Haye said: “It’s going to be explosive and I just feel consistency of healthy living i will ill win this fight.
“Whichever fighter has lived the cleanest in the last 20 years of their life, not just in the last six weeks, 12 weeks, or three months.
“No, No, 20 years, and in the last 20 years ye Roy Jones Jr had 32 pro professional fights. “Tyson has had eight and, of those, he has only won three. “That’s not the best form going into a fight with one of the fastest, most agile, athletic, skilful, living legends. “Tyson, at the age of 54, is tailor-made for Jones, if he can get through round one and the beginning of round two. If Tyson throws five bursts of five to 10 seconds each, it’s over, because he’s either knocked Jones out or he’s punched himself out.
“One of the two and after the first round we’ll know exactly how it’s going to go.”
The fight has drawn criticism from some quarters, with plenty believing Tyson and Jones should leave the fighting to younger men.
But Haye added: “I find it strange when people say they shouldn’t come back.
“Who are we to tell another human being they’re not allowed to do it? Imagine if Andre Agassi and
Pete Sampras said, ‘We want to have an exhibition match. We’re going to sell some tickets, we’re going to do it on pay-per-view’.
“Would the tennis world go, ‘This is disgusting, we don’t want to see these guys, they can barely run around now, they probably won’t be able to serve over 100mph?’
“No, they’ll say, ‘Let’s watch it and enjoy seeing these old greats do what they want to do’.
“They are two great fighters who have probably taken hundreds of thousands of punches in the head.
“Who cares if they want to take a couple more in their 50s? Let them do it, let them enjoy it.”