The common perception of David Haye can be sliced into two - what many thought of the British fighter before he took on and lost to Wladimir Klitschko and how many choose to peceive him now.
Before Saturday night Haye was seen as a serious threat to a consistent and careful fighter in Klitschko who was seen to have a brittle interior behind his defences - as evidenced in his three career knockout losses.
It shows you how fickle, exciting and unpredictable the world of boxing can be though. One minute you're on top, the next you're apparently a nobody as pre-fight predictions of an era-defining contest for the heavyweight era were tossed away. Haye now find himself subject to scorn after not living up to his hyped-up boasts.
There has been some relish from fight fans not particularly keen on David Haye's personalilty and I was inclined to think of a similarly vocal and pumped-up fighter from Britains, Prince Naseem Hamed, who was also gleefully fed a plate-load of humble pie after crashing to a points loss to the brilliant Marco Antonio Barrera.
While boxing, despite its many faults, should not be compared to the pantomime of wrestling just yet, it's clear that Haye's mouth helped as much, if not more, than his fists to get this major fight - not to mention payday in the process.
But away from the hype machine, how does Haye's career record stack up? It's a particularly significant subject insofar as he finds himself at something of a crossroads having always claimed he would retired by the age of 31 - an age he will turn in just three months time.
Will he fight on or will he retire? A tricky but make no respect canny negotiator who likes to get what he feels he's worth - and there's no shame in that - Haye has made a lot of enemies and there's no chance he will be able to continue with such an approach if he hopes to position himself with a world title shot again.
Instead, Haye faces a few less appetising opportunities if he chooses to rumble on with his career. This might include a rematch with Wladimir for a lot less money and less enthusiasm from the fans. It might mean taking on a fringe contender such as Chris Arreola, which would do little for Haye's ring record. Wladimir's brother Vitali is tied up taking on Tomasz Adamek in September so there's little chance of that fight happening in the short-term.
There's always the promised retirement but where would that leave Haye's legacy?
Well, as a cruiserweight there's no doubt Haye cleaned up in a short space of time and was a unified world champion. That deserves huge credit.
But as a heavyeweight David Haye has fallen short of his promise. Monte Barrett was a decent journeyman, Nicolay Valuev a novelty act reliant on immense size and little technical skill, while John Ruiz was a grizzled veteran past his best and Audley Harrison a cash-making unwilling opponent.
It's not a poor legacy but it's certainly no better than average in what has been a dour time for the heavyweight champion. Perhaps we expected too much of Haye, who had and may still have a fresh, engaging personality coupled with speed and pop in the ring but on his biggest night fell short.
There's no doubt Haye will be burning inside from the loss and it could well force him to re-schedule his plans to try and right a wrong. He still has all his faculties so perhaps one more year might help ease the pain. Of course, as the previous legendary Roy Jones Jr has shown, a slippery slide can add more and more cracks to a legacy.
This is the dilemma Daid Haye faces.
Before Saturday night Haye was seen as a serious threat to a consistent and careful fighter in Klitschko who was seen to have a brittle interior behind his defences - as evidenced in his three career knockout losses.
It shows you how fickle, exciting and unpredictable the world of boxing can be though. One minute you're on top, the next you're apparently a nobody as pre-fight predictions of an era-defining contest for the heavyweight era were tossed away. Haye now find himself subject to scorn after not living up to his hyped-up boasts.
There has been some relish from fight fans not particularly keen on David Haye's personalilty and I was inclined to think of a similarly vocal and pumped-up fighter from Britains, Prince Naseem Hamed, who was also gleefully fed a plate-load of humble pie after crashing to a points loss to the brilliant Marco Antonio Barrera.
While boxing, despite its many faults, should not be compared to the pantomime of wrestling just yet, it's clear that Haye's mouth helped as much, if not more, than his fists to get this major fight - not to mention payday in the process.
But away from the hype machine, how does Haye's career record stack up? It's a particularly significant subject insofar as he finds himself at something of a crossroads having always claimed he would retired by the age of 31 - an age he will turn in just three months time.
Will he fight on or will he retire? A tricky but make no respect canny negotiator who likes to get what he feels he's worth - and there's no shame in that - Haye has made a lot of enemies and there's no chance he will be able to continue with such an approach if he hopes to position himself with a world title shot again.
Instead, Haye faces a few less appetising opportunities if he chooses to rumble on with his career. This might include a rematch with Wladimir for a lot less money and less enthusiasm from the fans. It might mean taking on a fringe contender such as Chris Arreola, which would do little for Haye's ring record. Wladimir's brother Vitali is tied up taking on Tomasz Adamek in September so there's little chance of that fight happening in the short-term.
There's always the promised retirement but where would that leave Haye's legacy?
Well, as a cruiserweight there's no doubt Haye cleaned up in a short space of time and was a unified world champion. That deserves huge credit.
But as a heavyeweight David Haye has fallen short of his promise. Monte Barrett was a decent journeyman, Nicolay Valuev a novelty act reliant on immense size and little technical skill, while John Ruiz was a grizzled veteran past his best and Audley Harrison a cash-making unwilling opponent.
It's not a poor legacy but it's certainly no better than average in what has been a dour time for the heavyweight champion. Perhaps we expected too much of Haye, who had and may still have a fresh, engaging personality coupled with speed and pop in the ring but on his biggest night fell short.
There's no doubt Haye will be burning inside from the loss and it could well force him to re-schedule his plans to try and right a wrong. He still has all his faculties so perhaps one more year might help ease the pain. Of course, as the previous legendary Roy Jones Jr has shown, a slippery slide can add more and more cracks to a legacy.
This is the dilemma Daid Haye faces.
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