ON THE SIDELINES : Italian Champ Offered Tyson Bout

Unbeaten Italian heavyweight Francesco Damiani has been offered a $1.5-million purse to challenge world champion Mike Tyson, the fighter’s manager, Umberto Branchini, said today. Branchini said the bid for a title fight with Tyson in the United States next fall came from Don King, the U.S. promoter who has been organizing Tyson’s most recent title bouts. “We are going to negotiate the match, and possibly better terms for Francesco,” Branchini said.