Tyson, Boxing World Floored -- Douglas' 10Th-Round Ko Among Biggest Upsets

TOKYO - Mike Tyson was on the floor, his face a mask of pain and defeat, as the referee counted over him. Across the ring, James ``Buster'' Douglas watched as the heavyweight champion of the world struggled to get off the canvas.

Iron Mike was ring rusty and Douglas pounded that rust off of him with sharp right hands, knocking him out in the 10th round today in one of the biggest upsets in boxing history.

In doing so, he stripped away the cloak of invincibility that Tyson had worn so proudly since first becoming champion in 1986.

``I wasn't afraid of the man. I'm only afraid of God,'' Douglas said.

Douglas admitted that he often had looked mediocre in past fights - his desire often was questioned - and said, ``It was time for the real James Douglas to come out.''

The real James Douglas befuddled Tyson with movement, jabs and quick right hands. The real James Douglas got up from an eighth-round knockdown when it appeared that he would remembered only for giving Tyson a tough fight.

The real James Douglas landed a right uppercut followed by a left and right to the head that dropped Tyson in a heap in Douglas' corner. There, his left eye closed, Mike Tyson, who once said he would have to be killed before he would give up his championship, was counted out.

``A fighter cannot afford to lose if he's a pro,'' Tyson said a few days before the fight.

Never was a defeat more costly. It cost Tyson millions of dollars for a scheduled defense against Evander Holyfield June 18. It could have cost him what he most cherished - a place of comparison with the great heavyweights of the past.

``I wanted it for my mother,'' said Douglas, 29, whose mother died Jan. 18. ``God bless her.

``I was clearly focused. I came to fight. I fought my fight.''

Douglas kept Tyson off balance with short rights to the jaw and left jabs in the first seven rounds.

Tyson nearly pulled it out in the eighth round, however. He dropped Douglas with a hard right uppercut and whether or not Douglas beat the count at the end of the round was a subject of heated debate afterward. A Don King-induced protest meeting was under way, reporters were told.

``I got careless and he hit me with a good shot,'' Douglas said. ``I knew he would come on. He's a champion.''

Two hours after the fight, the heads of the World Boxing Association, World Boxing Council and the Japan Boxing Federation announced there would be a news conference related to a protest filed by King several hours later.

The president of the Japan Boxing Federation said videotape showed Douglas was down for 12 seconds in the eighth round.

Said King: ``Buster Douglas was knocked out. He was down for 12 seconds. All we want is a fair result.''

An estimated crowd of 40,000 at the Tokyo Dome was charged with excitement as Tyson came roaring out of his corner in the ninth round, intent on finishing the job.

At the end of the ninth round, the crowd was still abuzz. Now, however, many were now sensing an upset.

In that ninth round, Douglas closed Tyson's left eye. He backed him into the ropes with a barrage of at least five punches to the head and hurt him on two or three more occasions during the round.

Then, just past the minute mark of the 10th round, Iron Mike became the tin man. Douglas hurt him badly with a right uppercut, and then knocked him down with the left and right.

At the time of the knockout, the three judges had differing views of the fight. Larry Rozadilla had Douglas leading 88-82, Ken Morita had Tyson ahead 87-86 and Masakazu Uchida had it 86-86.

The Associated Press had Douglas leading 85-84.

``Him being the champion, I knew it would be difficult for me to get the decision,'' Douglas said.

Tyson left the dome without speaking to the media.

``I saw them putting the belt on other guys,'' Douglas said, recalling his spotty past. ``I said one day it's going to be me. Thank God it's now.''

At 1:23 of the 10th round referee Octavio Meyrom counted 10 and Douglas was the new heavyweight champion.

Now he will replace Tyson against Holyfield June 18 at Atlantic City, N.J.

Holyfield was at ringside and his immediate reaction was that he didn't care who he fought as long as he fought for the title.

However, his manager, Ken Sanders; adviser Shelly Finkel and promoter Dan Duva were not overjoyed at the prospect of a Douglas-Holyfield fight. Neither was Don King, Tyson's promoter and adviser.

Many people thought Douglas could have continued when he was stopped in the 10th round by Tony Tucker in a bid for the vacant International Boxing Federation championship May 30, 1987. His dedication was questioned on other occasions, too.

No longer. Now it's Tyson who will have to deal with doubt - a word foreign to him until today.

After Douglas knocked him down, Tyson rolled over on his knees as the count of five, picked his mouthpiece off the floor and put it back in his mouth. He struggled to his feet as the count was ending and Meyrom grabbed him in a bear hug.

Douglas, of Columbus, Ohio, who weighed 231 1/2 pounds, 11 more than Tyson, got $1.3 million for his 30th victory and 20th knockout against four losses and a draw.

Tyson, 23, who was making his 10th defense, now is 37-1 with 33 knockouts.

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HEAVYWEIGHT

FIGHT UPSETS

Notable upsets in heavyweight title fights:

-- Jim Braddock defeated Max Baer at New York City, 15-round decision, June 13, 1935.

-- Ingemar Johansson stopped Floyd Patterson at New York City, third round, June 26, 1959.

-- Muhammad Ali stopped Sonny Liston at Miami Beach, Fla., seventh round, Feb. 25, 1964.

-- George Foreman stopped Joe Frazier at Kingston, Jamaica, second round, Jan. 22, 1973.

-- Muhammad Ali knocked out George Foreman at Kinshasa, Zaire, eighth round, Oct. 30, 1974.

-- James ``Buster'' Douglas knocked out Mike Tyson at Tokyo, 10th round, Feb. 11, 1990.

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BUSTER DOUGLAS, BY THE NUMBERS

The career boxing record of James ``Buster'' Douglas, who became the heavyweight champion by knocking out Mike Tyson:

-- WON: 30 -- LOST: 4 -- DREW: 1 -- KO: 20

-- 1981: May 31 - Dan Banks, Columbus, Ohio KO 3. Jul 23 - Michael Lear, Columbus, Ohio W 4. Sep 27 - Mike Rodgers, Columbus, Ohio KO 3. Oct 14 - Tommy Stevenson, Indianapolis KO 3. Oct 23 - Johnny Clark, Toledo, Ohio KO 3. Nov 6 - David Bey, Pittsburgh L 2. Dec 23 - Donny Johnson, Canton, Ohio KO 3.

-- 1982: Jan 23 - Hubert Adams, McConnelsville, Ohio KO 1. Feb 14 - Donnie Townsend, Erie, Pa. W 6. Feb 15 - Marvin Earle, Kalamazoo, Mich. KO 2. Mar 25 - Ric Enis, Indianapolis W 6. Apr 26 - Mel Daniels, Johnstown, Pa. KO 1. Oct 13 - Stefan Tangstadt, Chicago D 8. Nov 20 - Tim Johnson, Columbus, Ohio KO 1.

-- 1983: Mar 9 - Jessee Clark, Niles, Ohio KO 2. Mar 29 - Leroy Diggs, Atlantic City, N.J. KO 7. Apr 16 - Jesse Clark, Grand Rapids, Mich. KO 2. Apr 29 - Henry Porter, Atlantic City, N.J. KO 2. Jul 5 - Dave Johnson, Atlantic City, N.J. W 10. Sep 28 - Eugene Kato, Atlantic City, N.J. KO 1. Dec 17 - Mike White, Atlantic City, N.J. L 9.

-- 1984: Jul 9 - Dave Starkey, Columbus, Ohio NC 1. Nov 9 - Randall ``Tex'' Cobb, Las Vegas W 10.

-- 1985: Mar 27 - Dion Simpson, Atlantic City, N.J. KO 1. May 9 - Jesse Ferguson, Atlantic City, N.J. L 10.

-- 1986: Jan 17 - Greg Page, Atlanta W 10. Apr 19 - David Jaco, Las Vegas W 10. Sep 6 - Dee Collier, Las Vegas W 10.

-- 1987: May 30 - Tony Tucker, Las Vegas L 10 (Lost IBF Heavyweight title). Nov 20 - Donny Long, Columbus, Ohio KO 2.

-- 1988: Feb 24 - Pernell Davis, Duluth, Minn. TKO 10. Apr 16 - Jerry Halstead, Las Vegas TKO 9. Jun 27 - Michael Williams, Atlantic City TKO 7.

-- 1989: Feb 25 - Trevor Berbick, Las Vegas W 10.Jul 21 - Oliver McCall, Atlantic City, N.J. W 10.

-- 1990: Feb 11 - Mike Tyson, Tokyo KO 10 (Won the World heavyweight title).