HAMBURG, Germany (AP) — Wladimir Klitschko won a unanimous decision over David Haye, adding the WBA title to his heavyweight haul on Saturday.
The victory in a rain-soaked football stadium in Hamburg means Klitschko and his older brother Vitali hold all three major heavyweight titles.
Wladimir already had the IBF title (and minor WBO, IBO belts), while Vitali was the WBC champion.
All three judges gave it to Klitschko, scoring the 12-round showdown 117-109, 118-108 and 116-110.
Haye, who stirred most of the hype with often crass trash-talking, said he hurt a toe on his right foot in training and lost some of his explosive power because of it.
"I couldn’t give everything I needed to, it was really frustrating," Haye said in the ring. "I had to knock him out and unfortunate I couldn’t do it."
Haye slipped to the canvas repeatedly as he got into clinches with the heavier, taller and more experienced Ukrainian, who was fighting in his home base.
Referee Genaro Rodriguez gave Haye a count when he slipped in the 11th round but he quickly got back on his feet.
Haye came out slugging in the final round, landing a series of body punches but never got close to rattling Klitschko.
For most of the fight, Klitschko stayed behind his feared left jab. He landed a right on Haye’s chin in the fifth but the Brit recovered nicely, bouncing off the ropes to stay on his feet.
