Lots of 'ifs' still stand in Tyson's path

WASHINGTON -- There are three big ifs blocking Mike Tyson's path before he can resume his boxing career.

If the judge who sentenced Tyson to jail permits him to travel out of state, if Indiana authorities don't revoke his probation and if Nevada authorities don't strip him of his boxing license, Tyson could very well be headlining a card in Las Vegas this spring.

It all starts with Tyson's behavior in the Montgomery County, Md., jail. If he doesn't cause trouble, he could begin training at an outside gym after the first two months or so of his one-year sentence.

Then, if Tyson's promoters can schedule a fight, he and his lawyers would appear once again before District Court Judge Stephen Johnson and request to travel outside Maryland.

"If he wanted to have a fight, they would petition the judge," Montgomery County State's Attorney Douglas Gansler said. "It's not atypical. People do it all the time for weddings, funerals or sometimes for work-related business."

Tyson, who pleaded no-contest to charges stemming from the August fender-bender, has been in the jail since Friday. Shelly Finkel, Tyson's adviser, said those who have visited the boxer describe him as "depressed."

"We didn't expect a sentence of this severity at all," Finkel said.

Typically, a prisoner with Tyson's sentence would serve about 60 days in the jail before being transferred to the county's prerelease center, where inmates can leave during the day for work and return at night.

"Any person who has a profession, we would make sure they could continue their work," Department of Corrections spokeswoman Claire Gunster-Kirby said. "We would work with Mr. Tyson or anyone to make they could continue in their profession."

At first, Tyson could train at a gym and later earn other privileges, such as home visits during the day to spend time with his wife, Gunster-Kirby said.

During the sentencing hearing, witnesses said Tyson had $20 million in debts, mostly to the IRS, and would need to fight three or four times this year to pay them off.

At 32, Tyson would be nearing the twilight of his boxing career even if it had not been interrupted by two jail sentences and a suspension for biting Evander Holyfield's ear during their 1997 title bout.

Tyson had been scheduled to fight a yet-to-be-named opponent April 24 in Las Vegas, although it's unlikely he could make that date if he remains in jail the full 60 days before transferring to the prerelease center.

Any plans for Tyson to fight could be thwarted by the Nevada Athletic Commission, which has the power to revoke the fighter's boxing license in light of the jail sentence.

Tyson only recently was reinstated after a one-year suspension for the Holyfield incident.

Tyson's lawyers have 30 days to appeal.

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