Slimmed-down Buster Douglas extends streak

Monday, March 31, 1997 | 11:59 a.m.

Sunday's win was the fourth straight for Douglas (34-5-1) since resuming his career after nearly six years in retirement. The 36-year-old boxer retired after losing the WBA, WBC and IBF titles in 1990 to Evander Holyfield.

After ballooning to nearly 400 pounds, Douglas returned to the ring on June 22, 1996, scoring a second-round knockout over Tony LaRosa.

Fighting out of Columbus, Ohio, Douglas weighed 240 pounds against Scott, his lowest weight for a fight since beating Mike Tyson on Feb. 11, 1990.

After a slow start, Douglas began to dominate the fight against Scott in the third round. In the fifth, Douglas took a hard right to the head, but immediately countered with a left-right combination that floored Scott.

"When he hit me with that right, it showed me he was still alive and still had fire in him," Douglas said. "Then I got his head to rocking. I didn't know when he was going to go, I just knew he was going to go."

Scott (22-4) went down twice more in the fifth, but both were ruled slips. The Kansas City-based fighter had clearly run out of steam, however, and hit the canvas after Douglas unleashed his decisive combination in the sixth round. Scott started to get up, but referee Steve Smoger ruled the fight over.

"I was in there fighting a hell of an ex-champion," Scott said. "I didn't think he'd have the speed he had. He had a stiff, hard jab."

Scott weighed 272 pounds for the bout. He had scored a huge upset in his previous fight, stopping highly touted prospect Courage Tshabalala in the second round.