PRE-FIGHT: After an interminable concert by rapper Jay-Z, we're about to start the main event down in Memphis. Though I've never done this before, I'll try my best to follow the fight round by round. I'll admit something right up front: I'm watching this fight out of morbid curiosity more than anything else. Lord knows what Tyson is actually going to do, and the fact that he could snap at anytime is what has me in front of the television tonight.
Stick with me.
ROUND 1: Looks like Tyson is going for the quick kill. Etienne is down, and this fight is over. So much for detailed commentary. So much for Tyson having to worry about taking a shot to his tatoo. In a round reminiscent of his best fights from the late 80s, Tyson gets to take down a man with a classic glass jaw.
POSTFIGHT: Tyson just revealed that he has a fracture in his spine that he suffered as the result of a motorcycle accident. He's offering few details as to what exactly happened, other than he discovered the injury when he couldn't perform any situps anymore.
POSTFIGHT CONTINUED: It's pretty clear that the folks at Showtime didn't expect this fight to get out of the first round. Looking at the program guide on my TiVo, boxing coverage was scheduled to begin at 10:00 p.m. EST. Jay-Z's concert concluded at about 10:20 p.m. And my TiVo program guide has the new Showtime reality series, Family Business, to begin promptly at 11:00 p.m.
Tyson is saying he doesn't want to fight Lenox Lewis right away -- he wants to get 2-3 other fights before taking on Lewis again.
Quote of the night from Tyson to Jim Gray:
"I just want to get my shit together. I'm so messed up, man, I just need to get my life together, brother."
CLOSING IT OUT: Showtime's Steve Albert says that this win sets Tyson up for another megabucks rematch against Lewis. Nick Charles says that Tyson has saved his career with the win -- a notion that I have to dispute, as it seems as if every time Tyson steps into the ring, he's fighting to save his career.
Potentinal date for next Tyson-Lewis match: June 21, 2003. If it happens, I hope it lasts longer than tonight's fight.
