Haye vs Barrett - The Result

On Friday night I decided to put my neck on the line and attempt to predict how the David Haye VS Monte Barrett fight will go. My exact words were:

“I believe this fight has only one outcome, that being a knockout victory for David Haye in the fourth or perhaps fifth round depending on the tempo of the first.”

Now I’m not one to brag, but I couldn’t have been more accurate. To add to my smugness, I backed up my prediction with a £3 bet on a fifth round KO at odds of 9/1, which brought in a handsome return of £30. So all in all, I had a result!

Moving on to the actual fight itself, David Haye sent out a message to the Klitschko brothers with his sensational demolition of Monte Barrett.

‘2-Gunz’ was sent crashing to the canvas five times before the fight was stopped in the fifth round.

Perhaps it was a sign to come when the American’s entrance was thwarted by those pesky ropes that surround the ring. In an ambitious attempt to jump over them, Barrett tripped and fell flat on his face in front of a packed O2 Arena.

The opening round was an edgy affair with Haye starting slower than you might expect, working the jab prompting Barrett to counter. The second round followed in a similar manner.

However, the third round was where the fight sprung to life as Haye floored the American with his famous left handed ‘Hayemaker’. Barrett quickly returned to his feet, only to be dropped again – this time via a thunderous right hand from the former cruiserweight world champion.

By the fourth round, Monte ‘2-Gunz’ Barrett was struggling to cope with Haye's speed and power. In a similar fashion to the previous round, Barrett was put on the deck early on thanks another left hook.

The fight looked to be over when Haye sent his opponent to the canvas for the fourth time in as many rounds, only to be thwarted by the sound of the bell, signalling another round of punishment for the visitor.

To Barrett’s credit he came out fighting in the fifth and somehow managed to send Haye crashing down. This however, was simply delaying the inevitable as the Londoner responded with a devastating combination to complete his successful transformation into a heavyweight contender.

Even the watching Vitali Klitschko expressed his surprise at Haye's performance when speaking to radio 5 live: “It’s not easy to go from cruiserweight to heavyweight but David Haye did it brilliantly. I was surprised.”

“The heavyweight division needs strong and good fighters. Last night I saw a new heavyweight fighter who can challenge for the world title.”