Tyson hell-bent on self destruction

Mike Tyson, once the all-powerful heavyweight boxing champion of the world, suffered another defeat on Tuesday when he was denied a licence to fight reigning champion Lennox Lewis. The fighter has been losing on a variety of fronts as his unpredictable behaviour has put his exploits in the ring in the shade.

Nevada denies Tyson license!

The World Boxing Council had said it would seek another venue for the fight, scheduled for April 6, if the Las Vegas ruling went against Tyson.

Have your say on Tyson's story!

The decision in Las Vegas, however, was not arguably going to have any bearing on Tyson's real future -- that he has been for some time hell-bent on self destruction.

Tyson, whose chief accomplishments as a New York schoolboy were to be arrested for stealing a purse when he was 12 and getting expelled four years later, had by the age of 21 in 1987 become the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world. From this remarkable pinnacle, reached in the ring with a mix of intelligent boxing and vicious stalking, it has been downhill all the way, from "Iron Mike" to "Mad Mike".

Tyson's arrival as champion was well timed, coming when heavyweight boxing was at a low ebb and in need of a charismatic and all-powerful champion to fill the void left by Muhammad Ali. He looked to have the strength to stay at the top for a long time and break records. But Tyson's arrogance and his failure to keep a grip on his life outside the ring, his marriage to actress Robin Givens ended acrimoniously in 1989, led to a shock defeat at the hands of James "Buster" Douglas in 1990.

It did not take long for other losses outside the ring, like being found guilty of raping Miss Black America contestant Desiree Washington in 1992 and being imprisoned for six years, to charter the decline.

Released three years later after serving half his sentence, Tyson regained his world crown and then lost it to Evander Holyfield, who showed all round superiority as a boxer, in 1996. The following year when the two men fought again, Tyson bit off part of Holyfield's ear, a premonition of his attack on Lewis's leg at last week's press conference perhaps, and was banned for a year and fined $2.85 million.

This was the worst of several moments when Tyson lost control in the ring. He hit Orlin Norris after the bell and tried to break Frans Botha's arm. "He is out of control and has been for years," said former British and European heavyweight champion Henry Cooper. There was another brief jail term for assaulting two motorists in 1998.

But the freak show had to go on, Tyson's pulling power with boxing crowds and pay-per-view television audiences too strong to be resisted by all the parties involved that stood to earn millions, the fighter included.

"This is Tyson. This is what people expect. That's why Tyson draws so much money," said Bruce Silverglade, the owner of Gleason's gym in Brooklyn, after the press conference fracas. Tyson, deep in debt, needed to fight and he took his show to Europe along with the controversy, while back home there were more accusations of rape. During a fight against fellow American Lou Savarese in Glasgow in 2000, Tyson struck the referee and was fined $180,000.

After the fight, Tyson made a distasteful attack at Briton Lewis, shouting: "I want your heart. I want to eat your children." He left last week's New York press conference screaming: "I just want to kill him (Lewis)." Despite Tyson's obvious intent on beating up Lewis outside the ring, it is not certain what pleasure he might derive from an unlikely victory in it.

Devouring his opponent seems more appealing than holding a title for a man currently facing yet another accusation of rape by a girlfriend and divorce from his second wife. Lewis would like to quit the business with a victory over Tyson that he hopes would answer doubters about his true standing in heavyweight boxing.

He could also spare everyone more attempts by Tyson to remain in the limelight and sully further the reputation of the once noble art of boxing.