Klitschko-Haye Fight Too Lackluster to Help Heavyweight Division

Saturday's Wladimir Klitschko-David Haye championship fight had a lot of high expectations for boxing. Klitschko and Haye were fighting to unify the heavyweight division, which is supposed to be a big deal on the boxing circuit. Heavyweight fighting isn't as big as it used to be, although this bout could have helped changed that. However, it ended the same as most every other fight over the years, which was the worst result possible.

The fight turned out to have little suspense, just like most bouts with one of the Klitschko brothers. As usual, Wladimir dominated right from the start, and won an easy unanimous decision to claim his third heavyweight belt.

Now Wladimir holds Haye's old WBA belt, to go along with his WBO and IBF championships, while his brother Vitali has the WBC title. As such, the Klitschko brothers officially rule over all aspects of the heavyweight division, which has technically been the case for years now. But their dominance hasn't helped boxing that much, and it helped even less on Saturday night.

The sport wasn't hurt by Klitschko winning, although it could have used another headline heavyweight with a Haye victory. However, since this was hyped as the bout that would revive the heavyweight division, there needed to be some thrills and suspense. Haye was billed as a fighter that could actually stand up to Klitschko, and hyped himself up as much before the big night.

But after being manhandled for 12 rounds, Haye revealed that he had broken his pinkie toe during training, which supposedly hampered his performance. As such, he said that he wanted a rematch when he was healthy, although he had talked about retiring at the end of the year. However, few boxing fans may be eager for a rematch, even if it would feature a healthier Haye.

The hard truth is that the sport doesn't need the heavyweight division as its major headliner anymore, especially with the likes of Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr. highlighting the other classes. In lue of a heavyweight champion that captivates the sport- which doesn't seem to apply to any of the Klitschko brothers -- the circuit seems to have become irrelevant.

This was its biggest chance in years to change that, but it was forfeited because of Haye's lackluster work, and Klitschko's inability to knock him out for good. As such, boxing followers will go back to wondering whether a Pacquiao-Mayweather super fight will happen. But at this rate, even if that unlikely showdown did take place, it would be a letdown as well with this sport's luck.

In the meantime, the Klitschko-Haye fight did at least unify most of the heavyweight crowns for the first time in years. However, since Wladimir and Vitali have no desire to fight each other, the division won't be completely unified any time soon.

Sources

SI.com- "Klitschko's easy victory is another setback for heavyweight division"

The Guardian- "David Haye sets sights on rematch with Wladimir Klitschko"