Tyson fight unlikely here
Advertiser Staff and News Services
Mike Tyson has been licensed in the state of Georgia and the Georgia Dome in Atlanta is reportedly among the sites under consideration for his proposed heavyweight title fight against champion Lennox Lewis.
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Tyson adviser Shelly Finkel said Tyson received a license to fight in Georgia Feb. 7. That came shortly after the Hawai'i State Boxing Commission, among other licensing organizations, received "unofficial feelers" from parties interested in promoting a Tyson fight, according to commission officials.
Mike Tyson needs a site where he can fight Lennox Lewis.
"We were approached unofficially and have taken no official action," Mike Machado, Hawai'i commission executive secretary, said yesterday.
Machado characterized the prospective promoters as "(Las) Vegas interests," but declined to be specific.
Even if Tyson had formally applied, it is unlikely his license application would have met with commission approval. Ted Candia, chairman of the commission, said he took an informal poll of commission members to gauge their feelings and the vote was 4-1 against licensing Tyson despite possible tourism benefits for the state.
Candia said the one member who was willing to consider licensing Tyson would do so only under certain conditions.
Machado said there is no application pending before the commission either for a boxing license for Tyson or a promoter's license to hold a show featuring the former champion. The five-member commission — Machado is a nonvoting member — isn't scheduled to meet again until next month although a meeting could be called with six days notice.
People in the boxing industry say Tyson, who was at Aloha Stadium for the Pro Bowl Saturday, has been vacationing and training on Maui.
Tyson was turned down for a license in Nevada on Jan. 29 and other states were expected to follow suit. But not all of them did. Tyson currently has license applications pending in California and Texas. And promoters in Michigan and Colorado are also said to be looking into the possibilities.
Tyson chose Atlanta "because there have been some big fights there, it's a major city that has held several big events and they have direct flights from London," Finkel said yesterday.
Though Tyson is moving forward with the fight as if it will happen April 6, Lewis is looking at June.
"The fight will not happen on April 6," Gary Shaw, Lewis' promoter at Main Events, said yesterday. "Lennox is in a courtroom now. He's not in training. It's Feb. 12. Anyone who is realistic will tell you that it won't happen on April 6."
