David Haye has admitted he underestimated Tony Bellew during their first meeting, but insists he won't be making the same mistake when the pair meet at London's O2 Arena for a second time on May 5.
The first fight between the British rivals ended with the former heavyweight world champion, 37, suffering a crushing defeat as Bellew stopped him in the 11th round. The rematch had originally been scheduled to take place on Dec. 17 but was postponed after Haye tore his left bicep in training.
Despite being hampered by a ruptured Achilles from the sixth round of the 2017 bout, Haye admitted he entered the clash in the wrong frame of mind and boxed "poorly" as a result.
"You have to go into a fight with the correct mindset," Haye wrote in a column for the Mirror. "In my mind, I was just going to go in there and knock Tony [Bellew] out.
"It sounds simple and primitive but that's what it was, I had no fear of his power.
"Normally when I go into a fight I make sure I don't get hit but I thought it didn't matter for this one. I thought that even if he hit me, it would make no difference; I thought there was no way I could lose."
Haye insisted the rematch would be a different story and said he would make sure he gave the Liverpudlian the respect he deserves, adding: "I could go into this fight with the same mentality but I'm not going to.
"Once you step in the ring with a fighter you naturally realise a level of respect for that person, regardless of whether you like them or not.
"On May 5, I'm going to go into it believing he can hurt me; having that awareness wakes you up, makes you sharper and heightens your senses."
He continued: "I'm going back to basics for this fight and going back to what made me successful in the first place and I'm looking forward to showing people what they didn't think I still have."