David Haye insists he is in 'perfect' condition but Anthony Joshua predicts victory for Tony Bellew
Haye is fully over the Achilles injury he suffered during his first bout with Bellew in March.
David Haye insists he is in "perfect health" ahead of his rematch with Tony Bellew and is expecting to put on a "perfect performance" – providing he maintains his fitness between now and December 17.
Bellew produced one of the shocks of the sporting year when he defeated Haye in their first bout at the 02 Arena in March, but his victory was tainted slightly by the Achilles injury suffered by his opponent in the fifth round.
There were fears that Haye would never fight again after suffering such a serious injury, but the former unified cruiserweight champion has made a complete recovery and is now confident of securing victory against Bellew, who was tempted to retire before agreeing to a rematch at the 02.
"Pressure has been put on it [the Achilles] and it's in perfect health, and I'm in perfect health," Haye told Sky Sports.
"I've been ticking over perfectly. I'm not going to do anything crazy. As long as I get in the ring in optimal condition, I will get a perfect performance."
Haye will hope to use the bout against Bellew as a springboard for a potential clash with world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua, who is preparing to defend his titles against Carlos Takam after Kubrat Pulev pulled out through injury.
Bellew shocked the boxing world when he stopped Haye in the 11th round in spring, but Joshua thinks the 'Bomber' will emerge victorious again if his Bermondsey-born opponent approaches the fight with the same attitude he carried into the first one.
"Brilliant for Bellew, he's a phenomenal character, one of the realest in the sport. I've got a lot of respect for him. I'll be there, it'll be one before Christmas to look forward to," Joshua was quoted as saying by GiveMeSport.
When asked to predict the winner, Joshua said: "It'll be the same outcome. Haye is fit he is training on Miami on boats living the life, but he won the fight before it was even fought in his head.
"If you look at the previous fight, Haye was just trying to land haymakers and Bellew was the boxer.
"Haye was swinging a big right hand and Bellew was moving his feet well. When you feel someone's best and you're able to carry on that gives you a boost."
