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Haye's trainer dampens rematch talk

David Haye was outmuscled and out-thought by Wladimir Klitschko © PA Photos

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Adam Booth, David Haye's trainer and manager, has urged his charge to quit boxing before his 31st birthday in October.

Wladimir Klitschko offered Haye a rematch after completing a one-sided points victory in Hamburg on Saturday but, with Haye nursing a broken toe, it is unlikely any fight will be possible prior to October.

Although Haye now faces the prospect of bowing out with a comprehensive defeat, Booth remains adamant that the time is right for him to hang up his gloves.

"My conviction has always been that I don't want David to box after October 13 - but it's not up to me, it's up to him," Booth told Sky Sports. "I believe he should walk away. The other thing is that now Wlad has all the belts, David is a voluntary challenger, he's not in a position to demand a 50-50 split [of the cash]. Even in a 50-50 scenario we had so much against us and, as a man, I don't know he could concede that much ground.

"He has a broken toe, that's going to take a few weeks to heal, and October 13 is only 12 or 13 weeks away - that's not a long time."

Booth has played down the significance of Haye's toe injury, preferring instead to focus on the size disadvantage that the Brit was unable to overcome.

"In the second half of the fight David was saying his legs weren't working," Booth said. "I think he took one heavy shot that he felt, Wladimir took a couple he felt but, effectively, we knew going to points was going to be difficult - and the better man won.

"The only thing David could have done more was get completely reckless, and that would have meant he got hit more and hit harder.

"Rounds three four and five, I felt relatively good as David was getting closer to him. But I remember thinking after round seven or eight that I'd asked David to do something for three rounds in a row and he hadn't done it. I realised he wasn't doing it because he couldn't - for whatever reason, whether it was his legs, his toe, or what Wlad was doing.

"I'm not making a big issue about the toe, it wasn't the reason for the loss. Wladimir was better on the night and he's a much bigger man."

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