Tyson Protest of Halpern as Referee Denied

Mike Tyson already has lost the first round of his scheduled World Boxing Assn. heavyweight title match against Evander Holyfield.

In an hourlong, sometimes heated public hearing before the Nevada State Athletic Commission, the protest by Team Tyson of the appointment of Mitch Halpern as referee for Saturday’s fight at the MGM Grand Garden was defeated by a 4-1 vote.

Tyson’s promoter, Don King, and his co-managers, John Horne and Rory Holloway, each took turns before the commissioners, requesting, demanding and sometimes almost pleading for Halpern to be replaced. Tyson was not present.

After the proceedings at the MGM Grand Hotel had ended, Tyson’s trainer, Richie Giachetti, was asked whether Tyson, due to receive $30 million for the fight, would go on with the bout.

Giachetti was noncommittal, saying only, “I’ve got to go talk to my fighter.”

Marc Ratner, executive director of the commission, and Luther Mack, the only commissioner to vote against the proposal to retain Halpern, said they fully expected the fight to be held.

Wednesday, Giachetti had indicated the Tyson camp blamed Halpern for several damaging head butts to Tyson in the first fight last November and for Holyfield’s excessive holding. Holyfield won with an 11th-round TKO.

But at Thursday’s hearing, Horne said only that Tyson wanted “a fresh face” for this fight.

“He is not psychologically prepared for the same referee,” Horne said. “It’s unfair to Mike Tyson. [Halpern] just saw Mike Tyson stopped in the 11th round. He’s only human. He just saw Mike Tyson pummeled. It’s not fair.”

Horne said his side would be happy with either Mills Lane, Richard Steele or Joe Cortez, the other referees who had been under consideration.

A representative of Holyfield said that his fighter wouldn’t object to switching to Lane.

Boxing Notes

Mike Tyson weighed in at 218 pounds Thursday, four pounds fewer than he weighed for the first fight. Evander Holyfield also weighed 218, three pounds more than he weighed in November. It is the least Tyson has weighed for a fight since he came in at 216 for his second fight against Donovan Ruddock in 1991.

Boxing promoter Don King, sued in May by Terry Norris in an attempt to break a contract, filed a $70-million suit against the fighter in federal court in New York. King’s suit seeks to maintain the promotional contract signed in October 1996 between King and Norris, the WBC welterweight champion, and prevent Norris from signing with any other promoter. . . . Larry Holmes, 47, the former two-time heavyweight champion with a record of 65-6 and 42 knockouts, will fight Maurice Harris on July 29 in the Garden Theater at Madison Square Garden. It will be Holmes’ first fight at the Garden in 18 years.