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Defending WBA heavyweight boxing champion David Haye of Britain trains in London October 11, 2010....
When Audley Harrison was listing weaknesses in the man he is challenging for the WBA heavyweight title, champion David Haye told him not to forget the fact he had fallen off his tricycle at the age of four.The two Britons, once good friends, face each other in Manchester on Saturday with Haye vowing for a "public execution" of his opponent, who is seeking to make up for 10 years of mockery over his underachievements since winning the Sydney Olympic super-heavyweight gold.
If Wednesday's news conference had been a fight, Harrison would have scored highly for his oratory. But Haye had already scored a technical knockout by rolling up late and keeping Harrison chomping on his chewing gum furiously as he waited.
Haye, who has lost just one of his 25 professional fights, is the overwhelming favourite. Consequently he took the fact that Harrison had to refer to his amateur fights for clues on how to beat him as an acknowledgment of his superior status.
"I only have to look at his last fight to see his weaknesses," said Haye, who like his opponent turned up in the plush hotel room wearing shades. "You are looking back to 97!"
He brushed aside Harrison's vow to plant him on the chin, widely regarded as the 30-year-old's weak spot, saying: "He'll cut his hand on the glass chin. You've got a cast iron chin (but) you haven't achieved what I have."
Harrison, who believes it is his "destiny" to win a world title after a decade of being called "Fraudley", "Audrey" and "Ordinary" said he thought studying mistakes that a young Haye made as an amateur would be the clue to beating him.
"History will repeat itself," he said before Haye interjected with: "I fell off my tricycle when I was four."
LOVE, HATE
Childhood accidents aside, Haye has the upper hand in terms of his career against 39-year-old Harrison's professional record of 27 wins and four losses.
Along the way, the pair have become enemies after being friends following Harrison's 2000 Sydney Olympic success. Haye refused on Wednesday to discuss why they had fallen out, while Harrison said it was all down to jealousy.
"After the Olympics I was the biggest thing since sliced bread...David Haye was in my slipstream. If anyone was envious, it was David Haye," he said, adding he had often had Haye on his undercard.
"I was never envious of David Haye, even though he's achieved his goals. I'm not a fair weather friend."
He said he would be "knocking out David Haye with nothing but love" and that despite feeling let down by his old friend the contest was purely business rather than personal.
For Haye, though, it was more about hate than love.
"You try to hate every one of your opponents, but it's only for that 12-round period," said Haye, who if he wins will face pressure to agree a fight with one of the Klitschko brothers who hold the other world heavyweight titles.
"In training you can use hate as fuel. It's not a good thing. When you're tired, when you need that extra bit of energy to think someone. I've got pictures of Audley all over my gym, whenever I'm starting to slow down I look at it and the pace goes back up, I get that little bit more out of myself."
(Editing by John Mehaffey; To comment on this story: sportsfeedback@thomsonreuters.com)
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