My boxer profile/legacy will be a little different. I have decided to do my write up on Mark Havey.
I often receive negativity about my articles. People say that I only write nasty things about fighters. I do play Devils advocate, but I tell the truth. With this article I will give both sides of the coin, but it will still upset many people.
I feel That Havey is overrated. He is respected by the industry, adored by the crowds and feared by his peers, but he is far from the perfect example of a Champion. I will start with my praise of the popular pugilist, and end as a critic.
His fighting. I can see why people like to see Havey fight. He is a power puncher with fast hands, He can punch from any angle and his punches are explosive. With a solid chin, he can really take a punch and has never been publicly knocked out. His key strengths are his defence, speed and timing. Simply put, Havey is a ring genius.
Crowd appeal. No wonder people pay big money to watch him fight. Havey is a knockout specialist. He is an incredible counter puncher. His ring walks are also the most expensive in EBU history. They are pure entertainment.
Courage. What I like most about Havey is that he is brave. He has never feared anyone and he has never ducked anyone. He has always been willing to risk it all and put it all on the line.
Impressive record. If you briefly scan over his record, you will be impressed. He has beaten so many top names. Multiple former Champions have been knocked out by Havey. 54 fights, 50 wins, 2 draws, 2 defeats, 45 KOs.
Abandoned hometown. Boxers are always keen to reward locals by fighting in their own home town. You have to show respect for the people that have bought tickets since you were a child. Not Havey. He went 13 fights without fighting in his home town. Name another EBU fighter that has done that?
His style. He isn’t the perfect boxer, as some claim. He has been caught off balance numerous times. He is also guilty of using tactics to catch the judges eyes. He openly said “the first and last minute of each round are what people remember. I fight hard for the first minute, rest for the second, fight hard for the third”. This is a 1980s trick that is frowned on these days.
Money priorities. Havey doesn’t fight for the glory, or because he cares about his supporters. He fights for the money. His promoter has openly said “He will only fight if the money is tempting enough”. I don’t resent anyone making good money for doing something so risky, but Havey is the second highest paid boxer in EBU history. His financial demands are paid for by the fans. Tickets for his last fight were 3 times higher than the previous.
He has lost. The EBU point to Havey as the shinning example of what you can achieve through dedication. He hasn’t always been dedicated. Although it was a long time ago, Havey was beaten by two average fighters. He destroyed them both in a rematch. This is proof that there have been times when he didn’t train or prepare properly.
Inactivity. Havey is a bad example of a Champion. A Champion owes it to his supporters to fight regularly. This gives them plenty of chances to attend shows. How many times has Havey fought just once in a year? A queue of boxers are looking to win belts. Any Champion that doesn’t defend their belts enough should be stripped.
The Havey myth. Boxers would fight Havey and believe they couldn’t win. His high KO ratio made them rely on single, safe punches. Havey is a counter. Single punches are easily countered for him. Boxers went in nervous because they believed him to be ambidextrous. I have it from a good source that he isn’t. Havey is what’s called cross-dominant. He uses different hands for different tasks. This is why he can box left or right handed. But I’m told he cannot defend in a right handed stance.
Weak against certain styles. To his credit, Havey is the only boxer I know that can fight well in any style. Boxers usually can only fight in one style, he can do them all. But people say he can defend perfectly against any style. This isn’t true. Watch Havey against a pressure fighter. He is clearly uncomfortable fighting at such close range. At mid-long range he is dominant. Close range exchanges rarely go his way. This isn’t really a negative. Every boxer is weak against at least one style. Its just the perfect example of writers making him out to be something he’s not. The Havey myth again.
O.G.Bond
English Boxing Union 