Former topless dancer files lawsuit against Mike Tyson

A former topless dancer is seeking unspecified damages from heavyweight boxer Mike Tyson in connection with a May incident in which she says the boxer struck her while she was at work.

In a lawsuit filed Friday, Victoria Bianco said Tyson struck her in the chest without provocation at Cheetah's, a topless club near downtown Las Vegas.

"Tyson's violent and powerful blow sent Victoria several feet across the floor and caused her to fall on her tailbone," according to the lawsuit. Bianco continues to seek medical care for her injuries, the lawsuit contends.

Cheetah's General Manager Rich Buonantony said club employees who saw the incident told him that Tyson never touched the dancer. He said Bianco would not have remained at the club and continued performing had she been struck by the former heavyweight champion.

"She would have to be able to take a punch better than Savarese," he said, referring to the Saturday fight in which Tyson took just 38 seconds to defeat fellow heavyweight Lou Savarese in Scotland.

Eight Las Vegas police cars responded to the Cheetah's incident on the afternoon of May 8. Police decided no charges were warranted.

The Cheetah's incident could potentially be raised as an issue if Tyson chooses to seek a license to fight in Nevada, said Marc Ratner, executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.

Also named as defendants in the lawsuit are Cheetah's, its owners and several employees. The lawsuit states that people associated with the club sought to conceal the incident.

Buonantony said club officials never sought to conceal anything about the incident.

In the lawsuit, Bianco acknowledged telling police that Tyson only verbally abused her. But she said this statement was the result of intimidating tactics by people associated with the club.

Buonantony said no one associated with the club ever sought to shape Bianco's statement to police.

According to the lawsuit, Bianco was fired after filing a police report the day after the incident. Buonantony denies that Bianco was fired. He said she removed her belongings from the club of her own volition the day after the incident.

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