• Boxing

Haye launches scathing attack on Klitschko

Wladimir Klitschko withdrew from his fight against Dereck Chisora, which was scheduled for April 30 © Getty Images

Enlarge

Related Links

• News: Vitali will stop Wlad fight - Haye
  
• News: Haye fears Solis will KO Vitali
  
• News: Klitschko fight 'couldn't be any bigger' - Haye
  
• News: Haye doubts severity of Klitschko injury
  
• News: Haye shrugs off ring-rust worries
  
• Profile: David Haye | Wladimir Klitschko

David Haye has trashed Wladimir Klitschko's standing as a heavyweight champion by taking a swipe at the level of competition he has faced.

WBA king Haye, who will try and win the WBO and IBF titles from Klitschko this summer, cited the Ukrainian's decision to fight Dereck Chisora, a veteran of just 14 pro fights, as evidence of his cowardice.

Although the Chisora bout has now been scrapped after Klitschko picked up a muscle injury, Haye will not let the matter lie as he ramps up the verbal battle against his long-time rival.

He also blasted Klitschko's safety-first tactics, which have seen him jab his way to a six-year reign at the top of the heavyweight division. Under the tutelage of legendary trainer Manny Steward, Klitschko has employed a cautious strategy in order to protect his chin, which has been exposed as vulnerable in the past.

"I think that he's very mentally weak, and once you touch his chin a little, he will revert back to type," Haye told boxingscene.com. "That's fighting like a coward. He tries to use his size behind his jab, but he can't jab against me. Very rarely does he go for the kill - he'd rather poke and annoy the crowd.

"I'm the one who is making this into a super-fight, you know? Wladimir has had 50-odd fights, and he's had no defining fights where you think, 'hey, that was a great fight'. This is the first time Klitschko is getting into the ring with someone who people think has genuinely got a chance of knocking him spark out. He has had a handful of fights against really low-level opposition. He picks a guy like Chisora who's never really had a big fight before."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.