'That's a lock'
Tyson set to fight again on April 24 in Vegas
Posted: Thursday January 21, 1999 06:19 PM
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Tyson had lost every round on the scorecards of two judges when he flattened Botha in the fifth round Al Bello/Allsport |
LAS VEGAS (AP) -- One huge right hand was enough to make Mike
Tyson millions of more dollars, this time in a second comeback
fight on April 24.
A Showtime television executive confirmed the date Thursday, and
said an opponent would probably be selected sometime next week.
"That's a lock," Showtime executive producer Jay Larkin said of the date for Tyson's next fight, which will be held at the MGM
Grand hotel in Las Vegas.
Possible opponents for Tyson include Axel Schulz, Lou Savarese,
Shannon Briggs and Michael Moorer, he said. That, of course, is
contingent on Tyson not going to jail next month when he's sentenced on
a no contest plea stemming from his assault on two men following a
traffic accident in Maryland.
Tyson's spectacular fifth-round knockout of Francois Botha on
Saturday night saved him from a possible embarrassing defeat that
would have derailed his latest comeback and plans to fight four
times this year.
Tyson had lost every round on the scorecards of two of the three
ringside judges when he flattened Botha with the punch.
"That's what Mike Tyson is about, amazing one-punch power,"
Larkin said. "Mike ended the fight in the way fight fans want to
see him end the fight."
Larkin said some 750,000 homes bought the fight at an average
price of $45, beneath the 1 million or so he had hoped for. But
he said a short time to promote the fight and a bad date brought on
by Tyson's desire to fight quickly cut into the buy rate.
"It's still the biggest pay-per-view event since
Tyson-Holyfield II," Larkin said.
The fight will be shown again on Showtime on Saturday night as part
of the network's "Free Preview Weekend."
Tyson's trainer, meanwhile, said Thursday that Tyson's 19 months
out of the ring were the main cause of his wild punches and failure
to throw combinations against Botha.
"I was a little worried the first couple of rounds," Tommy
Brooks said. "He came out and was the Mike Tyson that fought
Evander Holyfield, not the Mike Tyson that I had worked with the
last couple of months."
Brooks said Tyson's next opponent would be a "formidable"
fighter and that Tyson would have to continue to improve to keep
winning.
"Inactivity shakes your confidence," he said. "Tyson is a
warrior, he's a fighter. He's looking forward to being one of the
top contenders again. He has to re-establish the confidence within
himself."
In other Tyson news, a May 19 trial date was set for a lawsuit
claiming Tyson owes former co-manager John Horne 10 percent of the
proceeds of five fights, beginning with the Botha fight.
Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Charles W. McCoy Jr., on
Thursday rejected a motion to dismiss Horne's suit against the
former heavyweight boxing champion.
The judge set the date for trial but also asked lawyers for
Tyson and Horne to attempt to resolve the dispute through
mediation. Tyson was not in court.
Horne, along with promoter Don King and co-manager Rory
Holloway, claim they have a 1995 contract with Showtime and Tyson
for 10 fights. But after Tyson was disqualified for biting
Holyfield in the fifth fight of that contract, and served a
suspension from boxing, he signed with new handlers and sued King,
Horne and Holloway.
Tyson made at least $10 million for the Botha fight.
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