John Watson Continues To Have Faith in Hayemaker
By Terence Dooley
Undefeated lightweight prospect John Watson, 26, is sticking by his promotional outfit, the Hayemaker boxer watched with disappointment as Setanta, who exclusively televise Hayemaker shows, went down the tubes earlier this week. However, the Liverpudlian youngster, 10-0 (4) as a pro, is not panicking, he believes that his boss will pull the organization out of the doldrums, and onto the TV screens.
Watson, who won an ABA title in 2004, is putting his faith in the marketability of David Haye, but is aware that the organization’s boxers face a tough six-moth period. Watson told the Liverpool Echo that he might be facing a long layoff himself.
“I think we may be looking at up to six months out of the ring but hopefully it won’t come to that,” he said. “In my opinion no other promoter in Britain puts on shows of the quality that Hayemaker do. Every fight on our cards are competitive and surely the TV companies will see that too.”
Hayemaker’s ace in the hole is Haye himself, who needs to put the disappointment of the aborted Wlad Klitschko fight to one side, and get back into the boxing ring. Watson believes that an active Haye will be good for everyone involved with the fledgling company.
“David Haye is the biggest star in world boxing,” he continued. “Never mind Britain, and Sky Sports surely realize that. With Joe Calzaghe and Ricky Hatton gone they need a marquee fighter to headline pay-per-view shows and David is that man. When you have a champion like that in your stable it stops you from worrying about the future too much, that’s for sure.”
Watson is a little worried, though, but not about his own career. Instead, he showed a lot of sympathy for his promotional stablemates, especially heavyweight David Price, who has only had one professional outing.
“Not so much for the likes of myself but I really feel for David Price in particular,” he lamented. “He’s only had one fight in six months after turning pro and there are one or two other new heavyweights out there getting the jump on him. Believe me, I’ve been watching him in the gym over the last few weeks, and he’s something very special. He’ll conquer them all eventually but what he needs most is fights. We all do.”
Haye has been negotiating with Sky Sports, who need to realize that, as a dedicated sports channel, they have an obligation to their subscribers, a good number of whom subscribe solely for the paltry boxing output that the channel provides. Hayemaker shows have featured some memorable fights, competitive contests that resulted in two-way action; they would be a good addition to Sky’s boxing output.
In the meantime British boxing fans will be keeping their fingers crossed, having the likes of Watson, Price, and Haye sat on the shelf is bad for the domestic game. Haye’s recent inactivity is especially harmful to his promotional company, as fighter-driven outfits rely heavily on the activity of their marquee fighter.
