David Haye to take up professional poker after hanging up his gloves

Haye, a destructive former world heavyweight and unified cruiserweight champion, retired from boxing in June after losing to Tony Bellew for the second time a month earlier

Friday 03 August 2018 11:26 BST
Comments
Jay from the Inbetweeners crashed Bellew-Haye press conference

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

David Haye is to spend the next year learning poker with the intent of taking part in the world’s largest tournament outside of Las Vegas once his apprenticeship is complete.

Haye, a destructive former world heavyweight and unified cruiserweight champion, retired from boxing in June after losing to Tony Bellew for the second time a month earlier.

The 37-year-old outlined his plans for the next 12 months at a press conference at the Ricoh Arena in Coventry, which will host the Goliath event in 2019 in which he is aiming to make his name as a poker player.

“I’ve always been intrigued by the skill and strategy of poker, so to be able to have the opportunity to work with Grosvenor Casinos and learn from some of the best players on the world circuit was an opportunity I couldn’t turn down,” Haye said.

“The next 12 months will be exciting, but I am also acutely aware that they will also be extremely challenging. I’m a complete novice so it’s a huge ask, but I am looking forward to the challenge and getting my teeth into something new before taking on Goliath.”

PA

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in