Posted on: Wednesday, February 13, 2002

EDITORIAL
Boxing commission: Just say no to Tyson

Representatives of heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson have approached the Hawai'i Boxing Commission, hoping to get a license to fight Lennox Lewis in a venue yet to be determined, Advertiser sports columnist Ferd Lewis reports in today's paper.

Tyson can't fight anywhere in the United States without a license, and Nevada officials voted 4-1 last month to turn him down. Presumably if Tyson were to obtain a license in Hawai'i, he could fight here or elsewhere.

There is no question that Tyson is a gifted boxer. But as a human being, his record is simply appalling, from a rape conviction to biting the ear of one of his opponents in the ring.

There's only one word that Tyson should hear from the Hawai'i commission. That word is no.