Tony Bellew has described David Haye as a "scumbag" and says the former heavyweight champion meant the offensive statments he made ahead of their heavyweight bout last weekend, where Bellew stole an unlikely victory.
Haye drew criticism following a pre-match press conference in Liverpool when he referred to the crowd in Bellew's hometown as 'retards.' Newstalk's Kevin Kilbane was among those who later condemned his comments.
He also threatened to "smash" Bellew's head.
Speaking to Kilbane and Ger Gilroy on this evening's Off The Ball, Bellew insisted that Haye made those remarks with conviction, rather than just for pre-fight theatrics.
"It was all real. The things he said, to me, declare that he's an absolute scumbag. This is the guy who said he's gonna put me in hospital. This is the guy who said 'your kids are gonna have to come see you in hospital,' absolutely disgusting. Really, really derogatory terms, things that shouldn’t be said in a boxing ring."
It got seriously heated in Liverpool today. The racist scumbag #BellendBellew Fans are a real prize bunch of drunk moronic imbeciles. #Scum pic.twitter.com/ljxCaSikUR
— David Haye (@mrdavidhaye) February 27, 2017
In relation to Haye tweeting out his verbal attack at the Liverpool fans, Bellew said: "He Tweeted it out like it was funny. But like I said, once a helmet, always a helmet in my opinion."
Bellew added that while he respects Haye for his boxing ability, he has a lower opinion of him on a personal level.
"As a fighter, I've always respected him. I've always thought he's an amazing fighter and really good at what he does. But as far as it goes - the person that he is, I don't think he's the nicest person in the world, far from it to be honest. But I do respect him as a fighter, massively. (He) showed a lot of courage in there, to carry on going, like I did myself with a broken hand (Bellew broke his hand during the fight)."
Looking forward, Bellew says that he will sit down with his team and assess his options before making any decisions. Retirement is a possibility, while the opportunity to contest for the heavyweight championship would also require some thought, if it's offered to him.
Image: David Haye and Tony Bellew during their clash at the O2 Arena in London.
For the moment however, the WBC Cruiserweight champion is happy to luxiarte in his victory.
"I'm happy and content with where I'm at, it's been a long road and I've worked very very hard. I've sacrificed my whole life to be in the position I'm in now and the crazy thing is I'm thinking about calling it a day.
"We'll see how it goes, I'll take my time to see how the healing process goes and just go from there.
"Emotionally and physically it's very, very hard [to come down from a fight]. It's hard to explain, especially in the fight I've just been in. The magnitude of the media, the attention it draws. I've beaten the most feared heavyweight in the world, I never thought I'd hear myself saying that.
"That's what I've just done, I've just slayed the beast and it is what it is. I don't know where I'll go next or what I'm gonna do. What I do know is, it won't be boring."
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