Where I Stand — Brian Greenspun: He’s on the ropes again

Thursday, Oct. 28, 1999 | 9:57 a.m.

Brian Greenspun is editor of the Las Vegas Sun.

A PICTURE could be worth $10 million!

The Nevada State Athletic Commission meets tomorrow to review the fight film and other evidence in its quest to determine whether last Saturday night's heavyweight debacle should result in disciplinary action.

The discipline, of course, would be meted out against a familiar target in recent years, former champ Mike Tyson. The early returns favor some type of action against the man whose in-ring antics have been surpassed in oddity only by those activities for which he's responsible outside the boxing ring. That there are people who want to punish Mike is beyond question. That there is reason to do so -- this time -- is where the doubt remains.

I didn't see the fight so I can't speak with any personal knowledge about what the Athletic Commission members will see before they make their decision. But like most living and breathing boxing fans, I have seen the news reports and heard the press conferences that have discussed ad nauseum this issue. There is one thing that does remain clear in my mind: While sometimes this kind of stuff happens to others who fight for a living, it seems it happens to Mike Tyson far too many times to be called coincidence.

It is for this reason -- that most people are just so sick and tired of Mike Tyson's antics in and out of the ring and the deleterious effect it has on the sport of boxing and its hosts in Las Vegas -- that the rumor mill is gearing up to suggest that the commissioners are going to dump hard on the former heavyweight champ. And while that may be the case, it should be important to make sure that whatever they do on behalf of the state of Nevada, that it is done in fairness and after due consideration of the facts.

Now before everyone goes off on a tangent that I am soft on a three-, four- or five-time loser, let me set the record straight. While I may have been wrong, it is highly unlikely that I would have voted to re-instate Tyson's boxing license when he asked the commission to do so earlier this year. Fortunately for Mike, and perhaps some of the hotels in town, I am not in a position where I could vote.

But with Nevada having given its blessing for Mike to return to the ring to pursue his quest for a third championship, we must make sure that, before we do anything of a more permanent and career ending nature, the facts support such a course of action.

Admittedly, I am reacting to the latest rumors but if they are right, the commission is looking to come down hard on Mike and his multimillion dollar purse. It was because of Mike Tyson that the rules were changed to make it possible for the commission to confiscate large amounts rather than what heretofore had been the slap-on-the-wrist kind of fines for bad behavior.

To all this I say: If the film and the other evidence shows that Mike Tyson acted in any way detrimental to the best interests of boxing, keep the purse and throw the book at him. He's had enough chances to do the right thing by Nevada and the profession he chose for himself.

But if, as I suspect, the evidence points to a different conclusion -- that the after-bell blow to his opponent was an accident -- then the commissioners have a different kettle of fish.

For a whole lot of reasons, all of them good, they may want Mike and any future episode to just go away. But to use what could be nothing more than an accident that could have happened to anybody as the basis for an expulsion or other severe disciplinary action is conduct that would not reflect well on what would otherwise be a well-intentioned Nevada State Athletic Commission.

In short, if Mike's actions were even the least bit mal-intentioned, get this issue and this fighter behind the state of Nevada, never to be heard from again. But if the evidence shows to the contrary, the commission must find another way to do what most people would like to see done. That is to end his career and the harm it may continue to cause to boxing.

In that effort there may be some help. If Tyson starts acting like he was talking earlier this week, he'll voluntarily end his career and save the commission the trouble. But I am afraid that if he wants to continue to pursue another championship, it will be up to this state to impose the kind of conditions that leave nothing else to chance.

After all, he's had more than his share of those already.