Boxing News & Notes: Tyson Melts Down ... Again

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Tyson Melts Down ... Again

Boxing News & Notes: Jan. 23, 2002

If Mike Tyson had conducted himself in a civilized, professional manner at the first news conference promoting his proposed April 6 bout with Lennox Lewis, now THAT would have been news. The fact that Tyson initiated a brawl and then launched into a violent, racist, homophobic outburst at the assembled media was pathetically predictable. Reports also have Lewis claiming that Tyson bit him on the left leg during the fracas! It really doesn't matter whether Tyson was intentionally trying to sabotage the bout so he doesn't have to face Lewis in the ring or simply endured yet another public meltdown. Either way the bottom line is that Tyson - who requires medication to achieve even his current level of stability (a scary thought) - is mentally unfit to fight. If the Nevada State Athletic Commission does its job and protects the best interests of the fighters and the sport itself, then it will not grant Tyson a license to fight Lewis or anyone else in the near future. Only by focusing exclusively on the revenue generating potential of this bout could the Commission overlook Tyson's mental, behavioral and legal problems and grant this walking time bomb a license to fight. Money talks and everything else walks in boxing so expect Tyson to get a slap on the wrist to go with his renewed license to continue to embarass himself and the sport of boxing.

This Saturday night, "Sugar" Shane Mosley defends his title against the last man to defeat him as an amateur -- undefeated Vernon Forrest. Mosley - arguably boxing's current pound-for-pound king - is facing an opponent that represents a true threat for first time since his June 2000 win over Oscar De La Hoya. Since then, Mosley has posted easy TKO wins over Antonio Diaz, Shannon Taylor and Adrian Stone. Despite an impressive amateur career, Forrest has been somewhat protected as a pro with decision wins over Ray Oliveira, Vince Phillips and Raul Frank as the only marginally impressive names amongst his 33 victories. Mosley is a well-deserved 7-1 favorite and the real question seems to be whether this will be a competitive bout or simply another Sugar Shane showcase.

It won't matter if he never fights again but Mike Tyson has let trainer Tommy Brooks go effective immediately. Tyson's reps apparently notified the respected trainer that "they didn't want to pay the money." This appears to be a shortsighted money-saving move that will do more harm than good. If Tyson plans to prepare for a Lewis bout with just Jay Bright and Stacy McKinley in his corner then the odds of Iron Mike pulling off an upset just got even longer.

Former middleweight champion Carl "Bobo" Olson, 73, has died after a long battle with Alzheimer's disease. Olson, the only Hawaiian boxer elected to the International Boxing Hall of Fame, compiled a 99-16-2 record with 49 KOs in a career that lasted from 1944 to 1966. Olson was winless in four bouts with Sugar Ray Robinson but recorded wins over Randy Turpin (for the middleweight title in 1953), Kid Gavilan and Joey Maxim (twice). Olson also challenged for the light heavyweight title in 19555 -- getting KO'd by Archie Moore in three rounds.

While overshadowed by the Lewis-Tyson fiasco, Oscar De La Hoya and Fernando Vargas did their best to discredit themselves and their sport by engaging in their own news conference scuffle. Vargas initiated the confrontation when he reached the dais and began exchanging words with De La Hoya. The two fighters shoved each other and Vargas put his hands around De La Hoya's throat but no punches were thrown and calm was quickly restored. However not everyone emerged unscathed -- Ricardo Jimenez, a Top Rank publicist broke his right leg when he tried to intervene in the scuffle. The De La Hoya-Vargas bout is scheduled for May 4 in Las Vegas and - unlike the proposed Lewis-Tyson fight - still has a good chance of actually taking place.

Felix Trinidad will return to the ring on May 11 for his first bout since his devastating 12th round KO loss to Bernard Hopkins back on Sept. 29. The former champ will take on Frenchman Hacine Cherifi in a 10-round middleweight match in San Juan, Puerto Rico. Cherifi would appear to be a perfect opponent for Tito -- he's a competent fighter (32-6-1 record) but not a dangerous one (20 KOs against mostly no-name opposition). Trinidad should win relatively easily -- the big question will be how Tito bounces back from his first professional loss. The pounding Tito took from Hopkins was not unlike the one Trinidad put on David Reid, who hasn't been the same fighter since and appears to be finished as a world class talent.

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