Haye wants to fight winner of Joshua/ Klitschko bout

David Haye didn’t always think a domestic showdown with Anthony Joshua would be a realistic possibility.The former WBA heavyweight champion didn’t realize Joshua would progress so quickly into one of the best boxers in their division. But now that they’ve both got big fights scheduled in London, Haye has been thinking more and more about boxing the 27-year-old Joshua in what would be a huge fight in England.

Haye says, however, that he doesn’t have an obsession with Joshua, just with being recognized as the best the heavyweight in boxing.“It’s not a burning thing,” Haye told Sky Sports for a story posted Tuesday on its website. “It’s just a goal that I’ve set [for] myself to prove that I’m No. 1. It was always my goal to be ranked No. 1 in the heavyweight division. And I had my chance to do that against Wladimir, but I failed and lost the fight on points.”

Klitschko defeated Haye in an infamously boring bout in July 2011, a heavily hyped unification fight that didn’t come close to meeting expectations in the ring in Hamburg, Germany. If Klitschko (64-4, 53 KOs) can defeat Joshua (18-0, 18 KOs) in their April 29 fight at Wembley Stadium in London, a
Klitschko-Haye rematch would be a very difficult sell due to the dull nature of their first fight.

Regardless, Haye (28-2, 26 KOs) must beat Tony Bellew (28-2-1, 18 KOs) in a scheduled 12-round fight March 4 at O2 Arena in London to have any shot at facing the Joshua-Klitschko winner.

The 36-year-old Haye has knocked out both opponents in two fights since ending a three-year retirement last January.“I’d like the opportunity to get into another big fight against a world champion who many people consider to be No. 1 and beat him,” Haye said. “The winner of Joshua and Klitschko, many people will consider that person to be the No. 1 in the division. If they were No. 1, I’d love the opportunity to test my skills against them. Big heavyweight fights. Big title showdowns. That’s always been the plan.”