Douglas Gains Title, But Tyson Gets a Rematch : Boxing: Holyfield’s manager says his fighter will probably step aside for three months but wants first shot at the winner of Douglas-Tyson II.

Now, the boxing world agrees: Buster Douglas is heavyweight champion. And it almost agrees: His first challenger will be Mike Tyson.

The final barrier to Douglas-Tyson II was breached Tuesday when Evander Holyfield’s manager, Ken Sanders, said in Atlanta that his boxer probably would step aside to allow the rematch.

Billionaire developer Donald Trump says Douglas-Tyson II will be June 18 in Atlantic City, although neither Douglas nor Tyson have signed contracts.

In fact, Douglas only learned hours earlier that he was undisputed champion when the World Boxing Assn. became the last of the sport’s three major governing bodies to recognize his 10th-round knockout of Tyson on Sunday in Tokyo.

“We don’t have a rematch now,” Don King, Tyson’s promoter and adviser, said Tuesday at a news conference. “We’re trying to get one. The first thing we have to do is get a rematch. As you know, the catching comes before the hanging.”

King said he was negotiating with representatives of Douglas and Holyfield to work out an agreement.

Tyson, who appeared with King at the news conference, said his loss was “a temporary, minor setback. I don’t take it to heart. I’ll be the champion again. I’m still one of the best fighters in the world and when the rematch comes I’ll prove it.”

Holyfield, as the No. 1-ranked contender, is the WBC’s and WBA’s mandatory challenger, but it looks as if he’ll wait for Tyson-Douglas II, then fight the winner.

“We’ve been approached to make a deal, by Don King, to step aside and make way for the rematch,” Sanders said. “We’re waiting for the contract from him. If it’s what they said it would be, we probably would do it.”

Sanders said Holyfield would fight a tuneup on the undercard, then fight the Tyson-Douglas winner in September or October. For his part in the rematch, Holyfield reportedly will get $3 million.

“They’re just asking us to move it three or four months,” Sanders said. “It’s a very good deal for us. We know we’re going to fight for the championship.”

King started the controversy over Douglas’ knockout by protesting that referee Octavio Meyran counted too long over Douglas when he was knocked down in the eighth round. After the fight, Meyran said he had mistakenly taken up the timekeeper’s count a few seconds too late.

In his hometown of Columbus, Ohio, Douglas said the main thing for him “is that I am now looked upon as the heavyweight champion of the world. It was a lifelong dream come true, and I thank God for that.”

The IBF recognized Douglas as champion immediately, and the WBC extended recognition Monday night after King, who promotes Tyson, dropped a protest of the result.

“I never asked anybody to change the decision,” King said. “We just want a first shot at a rematch.”

In a telephone interview from Los Angeles, WBC president Jose Sulaiman apologized for initially withholding the title from Douglas, saying he was embarrassed by his actions.

“I felt embarrassed to Buster Douglas,” he said. “I felt it was not fair to the kid that I had withheld my opinion about the result of the fight.”

At the same time, he said King had put no pressure on the WBC to give the title back to Tyson.

“The WBC is not controlled by Don King or anybody,” Sulaiman said. “I laugh at those rumors started by people who cannot accept us.”