Columnist Ron Kantowski: Count latest knockout as one of Tyson's best

Ron Kantowski's notes column appears Tuesday. Reach him at ron@ lasvegassun.com or 259-4088.

There was a line in a wire service story following Mike Tyson's lightning-in-a-bottle, fifth-round knockout of Frans Botha that suggested the latter turned out to be a credible opponent after all.

Like that was some sort of revelation or something.

Anybody who follows the sport or witnessed Botha's resiliency in a bruising 12-round bout against Michael Moorer knows the guy in the buffalo suit can fight a little bit.

In fact, you wouldn't need a boarding-house reach to call Tyson's win over Botha one of his best ever, for at least two reasons.

First, when you look at his bout sheet, who has Tyson beaten? Hard as this is to believe, the only marginally skilled Razor Ruddock, whom Tyson beat twice (once by a close decision), might be the best fighter Iron Mike has vanquished. You can't count Larry Holmes, who already was shot by the time Tyson fondled his first pair of buttocks.

Of course, that (fighting nondescript opponents) is no fault of Tyson's. True, his resume has more creampuffs than the Georgetown basketball schedule. But it wasn't like he was ducking UConn to play St. Leo's. There just wasn't anybody decent for Tyson to fight.

The days of the good, journeyman heavyweight, when guys such as Earnie Shavers, Ron Lyle, Jerry Quarry, Oscar Bonavena, Jimmy Young, and Jimmy Ellis roamed the division, became extinct a generation ago.

But the other reason Tyson's win over Botha should be considered one of his career highlights is that not only did it come over a decent opponent, but it was rendered in stunning, one-punch fashion. And remember, it followed an 18-month exile from the sport at an age (32) where the skills of even the most active fighters begin to erode.

In retrospect, it was a good win for a good -- but never a great -- heavyweight.

* A LAS VEGAN, TO BOOT: Las Vegas-born Ian Feuer is on the verge of becoming the third American soccer goalkeeper to join England's prestigious Premier League.

Feuer, who left Las Vegas at age 16 to play competitive soccer in Europe, had a brilliant run in the ongoing F.A. Cup tournament, posting four straight clean sheets (shutouts) for minor league side Rushden and Diamonds. His Cinderella story came to an end in a 3-1 replay loss last week to Leeds United of the Premiership.

One of Feuer's more noteworthy efforts came in a 0-0 result in the initial meeting with Leeds, one of England's top sides this year. To put that result in perspective, it was like a team from the New York-Penn League taking the Yankees into extra innings.

There are four divisions in English soccer. Rushden and Diamonds is considered part of the fifth division.

"Keeping a clean sheet against Leeds was one of the special days of my career," said the 6-foot-6, 27-year-old Feuer.

The only three Americans active in the Premier League are goalkeepers -- Kasey Keller at Leicester, Brad Friedel at Liverpool and Espen Baardsen (American born but a naturalized Norwegian) at Tottenham Hotspur.

* AROUND THE HORN: What's in a nickname: Doug Krikorian of the Long Beach Press-Telegram must have a reason for referring to Tyson-Botha referee Richard Steele as "Dick Steele" in print. ... On the other hand, the usual "Iron Mike" designation was dropped from Mike Tyson's name during the prefight introductions Saturday. ... TV reporters faced with a Tyson interview take note: A device called TV Guardian: The Foul Language Filter received the Best of Show award during the Consumer Electronics Show at the Las Vegas Convention Center. TV Guardian is a computer software device that detects and filters out virtually all profanity and other offensive language in television programs and movies. ... Famous ring announcer Michael Buffer, his place in the middle of the ring at the Tyson-Botha fight having been taken by Jimmy Lennon Jr., will announce the starting f ield at this weekend's Indy Racing League season opener at Walt Disney World. At least this time when Buffer bellows "Let's Get Ready to Rumble" he'll lite

rally mean it. ...

There actually is somebody who wants to attend the Pro Bowl in Honolulu for the game itself. The Indian Springs High School cheerleaders have been selected to do cartwheels at the annual NFL all-star game, but need some financial assistance to make it happen. To make a pledge, call 1-702-879-3201. ... According to basketball writer Frank Burlison of the Orange County register, the one job that John Thompson, who recently resigned at Georgetown, would be interested in is UNLV. The trouble with that is Bill Bayno doesn't appear to be going anywhere for a while. So The Hoyatollah, who owns a home here, will have to settle for being a part-time Las Vegas resident. ... The Nevada Interscholastic Activities Association's attempt to banish California schools such as Truckee and Needles from its membership was chronicled in the Jan. 11 edition of Sports Illustrate d, which you may or may not have seen. And that's including subscribers. My copy was missing eight pages (none of which was numbered), which an SI spokesma

n called a production error. He said any subscribers who want the entire magazine for posterity's sake should contact SI Customer Service at 1-800-528-5000. ... Evidence there just isn't enough quality radio programming to go around the dial these days: Gonzaga at Portland, NCAA men's basketball, 5 p.m. last Friday, KSHP 1400-AM.

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