Don King turned 80 years old today, and the Daily Mail has a long tour through King's career, and the man himself speaks on controversial topics such as his relationships with past star fighters (Ali, Tyson, etc.), his favorite fights he's ever promoted, and more.
But it was a statement about today's heavyweight division that caught my eye. It's nothing unusually ridiculous from King, but he's still going strong when a mic is in front of him:
He has not given up on a stagnant heavyweight division ‘even though the Klitschkos, who are good big men, are more champions of Germany than of the world and your David Haye was a horrible disappointment against Wladimir'.
King adds: ‘Haye would never have fought that feebly if he had been with me. He had the charisma and style to revive heavyweight boxing but, in a stadium full of Germans, he became one of many fighters I've known who were afraid to hit the white man.'
I fail to understand many things that Don King has said, but how David Haye would be a different fighter in the ring under his promotion is truly beyond me. I also don't really know what "the white man" has to do with anything, but hey, that's Don King for you.
Truth is, King is a marginalized promoter at this point who can't come close to keeping pace with Top Rank or Golden Boy, and he lingers pretty well behind even DiBella and Shaw now. King is a character who occasionally promotes fights now, and as such, big deal, I guess. He's always going to be one of the most controversial characters in boxing so long as he's a character in boxing, and one of the most colorful and charismatic. He is who he is. Perhaps he'll get Kali Meehan that world title shot someday.