David Haye vs Mark De Mori: Boxing on TV this weekend including Deontay Wilder vs Artur Szpilka

The 'Hayemaker' returns to the ring this weekend

David Haye clashes with Mark De Mori during the announcement of the fight (Getty Images)

During the early 2000s the BBC created a celebrity boxing show which featured two famous faces battling in the ring to raise money for charity.

The first edition saw Bob Mortimer eke out a narrow split decision victory over Les Dennis, before Grant Bovey was memorably robbed months later in his legendary bout with Ricky Gervais.

Bovey vs Gervais was a clash which resonated throughout the country, and over five million viewers tuned in to see a true people’s champion battle the comedian Gervais.

Boxing scorecards can be impossible to predict at the best of times, but despite three rounds of controlled aggression from the taller Bovey, it was the hand of Gervais that was raised in victory.

As if raising the plight of Flake chocolate bars wasn’t enough during his wedding to Anthea Turner, the generous Bovey also displayed the often clueless side of boxing after his controversial defeat.

After the first two fights had drawn much intrigue, a third bout between BBC political correspondent John Pienaar and Spandau Ballet singer Tony Hadley had been arranged much to the excitement of the sporting world.

“Thank you for coming home, I'm sorry that the chairs are all worn, I left them here I could have sworn,” sung Hadley on Spandau Ballet’s iconic single Gold, and his words proved to be eerily prescient after the much anticipated ‘clash of the century’ was cancelled after pressure from the British Boxing Board of Control.

In classic BBC style, the organisation roared back to boxing life in 2004 when Ben Fogle channeled the spirit of Ricky Hatton as he outclassed Sid Owen, while there was no S Club Party for Bradley McIntosh a year later as he was soundly beaten by Jack Osborne.

2008 saw perhaps the ultimate classic of the celebrity boxing genre when Lemar, the man who should have won the first season of Fame Academy, fought television presenter Ben Shephard in a scintillating three round bout.

Lemar started in stronger fashion, before Shephard gallantly fought back to leave the first round a genuine 50/50.

If there’s any justice in the world this fight would have gone 12 rounds, but after three stanzas it was clear Shephard was the winner as his superior fitness and combination punching proved too strong for Lemar.

This Saturday night, the former two-weight world champion David Haye returns to the ring in a fight that is far less competitive than any of the aforementioned celebrity bouts.

Haye used to be a man who inspired passion and belief in boxing fans, but years of unfulfilled promises have tarnished the reputation of an athlete who was once one of the best fighters on the planet.

His opponent at the O2 Arena will be Mark De Mori, a 33-year-old Australian who has only lost once in 33 fights.

A 30-1-2 résumé is a very respectable statistic for a boxer, but pretty records belong to 1980s indie record labels, not professional sportsmen.

Of De Mori’s 30 wins, half have come against fighters with less than five career victories, while his most recent triumph occurred last October against a man who has been stopped in 13 of his last 16 matches.

Put simply, if David Haye had been out of the ring for ten years rather than four he would still be expected to knock De Mori out within two rounds, and if he had never boxed before it would probably take him four.

Ben Shephard fought Lemar

As Haye is now a celebrity rather than a boxer who prides himself on legitimate sporting challenges, it will be interesting to see if he can dazzle the London crowd as Shephard did, or if he’ll end up singing the blues like Lemar.

Chief support on the undercard features Tony Dodson, who last beat an opponent with a winning record in October 2011, against Richard Horton.

At least the card is on Dave so there is bound to be a repeated episode of Top Gear on afterwards.

Wilder vs Szpilka, Saturday night 3am, Sky Sports 1

Two further heavyweight clashes take place later on Saturday night, as a brace of world championships will be decided in Brooklyn.

WBC champion Deontay Wilder defends his belt for the third time against Artur Szpilka, with the American titleholder confident of a 36th successive victory.

Wilder won the WBC title a year ago after an impressive points win over Bermane Stiverne, but has struggled to impress in recent bouts despite stopping both Eric Molina and Johann Duhaupas.

Deontay Wilder will defend his WBC heavyweight title (GETTY IMAGES)

The 30-year-old has eyes on possible showdowns with Tyson Fury and Alexander Povetkin later this year, but will need to be careful against the game Szpilka whose lone defeat came against Bryant Jennings two years ago.

In the second title bout of the night a new IBF heavyweight king will be found after Tyson Fury was forced to vacate one of the three titles he won against Wladimir Klitschko in November.

Either the powerful American Charles Martin or Ukraine’s Vyacheslav Glazkov will become world champion, and the bookmakers can barely separate the two with a narrow 4/6 favourite against Martin’s 6/5 odds.