David Haye will Boss Ruiz in Manchester

WBA heavyweight champion David Haye, 29, will face former two time champion John Ruiz when he defends the title for the first time in April at the M.E.N Arena, Manchester.

"Now it's time to showcase my skills again in front of the great British public and I'm delighted to have the fight at Manchester's MEN Arena” said the Brit.  "I've been there on many nights to watch Ricky Hatton, Joe Calzaghe, even Mike Tyson, and the atmosphere was always tremendous.

Fans are sure to pack the 23, 000 capacity venue to witness the first heavyweight title fight to be contested on these shores for over a decade. Lennox Lewis second round knockout of Francois Botha in 2000.

The Hayemaker defied the odds in November when he took the title from man mountain Nikolay Valuev in Nuremberg, Germany.  Many analysts thought Haye, 23-1, (21), would need the knockout to win the title in Germany.  The brash Londoner remained an elusive target circling Valuev using stick and move strategy.  In the last round Haye landed a big shot momentarily staggering the 7ft and 316 pound Russian.  It was the first time we witnessed Valuev hurt in 52 fights, indicating Haye had indeed carried his power to the upper echelon of the division, and could be a serious threat to anyone in the division.

Faced with such weight and height disadvantages we can forgive Haye for the style he had to adopt to win the title, however against Ruiz fans will be looking for the old Hayemaker.  In front of a home crowd and with a possible Klitschko fight on the horizon; Haye is eager to look good in his first defence.

"I'm looking forward to getting back to what I do best -- throwing my trademark 'Hayemakers'. Ruiz is a come-forward fighter so I aim to get at him, break him down and take him out in good style."

Haye is taking nothing for granted; he will enter the ring the betting favourite; however Ruiz previously held the same title between March 2001-March 2003 and February 2004-December 2005.  The Latino has shared the ring with Champions and top contenders alike over the past decade.

by George Napier