Former two division world champion David Haye has pulled out his bout with Tyson Fury for the 2nd time, this time for a shoulder injury that required immediate surgery according to Dan Rafael of espn.com
The bout was originally scheduled for September 28th but a cut over Haye’s eye forced a postponement to February 8th.
“I genuinely believed the shoulder injury wasn’t that bad,” Haye said. “But the doctor sent me for a detailed MRI scan and within 24 hours I was told the full extent of the damage. Twenty-four hours after that I was in the operating theater.
“It’s a crushing blow for me. I had big plans for next year and the ultimate goal was to win back the world heavyweight title, something my amazing fans deserve.
“What I didn’t anticipate was that this year would be the unluckiest of my career and that a number of injuries would disrupt my plans so much. Perhaps it just wasn’t meant to be. The boxing gods keep hinting that maybe enough is enough and that it’s time to finally hang up my gloves.”
“The surgery and subsequent results are a bitter pill to swallow because I truly felt I had a lot more to offer and was looking forward to paying back my loyal fans with some great fights in 2014,” Haye said. “But I’ve been boxing for 23 years now, amateur and pro, and this has clearly taken its toll on my body. I can only offer my sincerest apologies to all those fans who have followed me over the years and, like me, wanted to finish on a real high. This wasn’t how I wanted to end 2013.
“If I’m now destined to have won the European championship, the unified world cruiserweight championship and the WBA heavyweight championship of the world, then so be it. I’m proud of these achievements and consider my boxing career a huge success.”
