Tyson Can Help Justify Washington’s Support

A great many people in the District of Columbia have demonstrated if not their faith in Mike Tyson then at least their willingness to allow him to ply his trade here.

It’s now time for Tyson to justify that outpouring of goodwill.

Tuesday night’s open forum confirmed what anybody not living in a cave already should have known: Most folks in Washington want the Lennox Lewis-Mike Tyson fight to be held here and are willing to passionately give voice to their reasons. What I don’t want to read or hear is that the process by which the vote was cast was somehow a distortion of the political process or that the room was somehow purposely stacked with Tyson supporters.

Anybody who strongly opposed holding the fight here should have stood up and said his or her piece. This wasn’t some secret meeting; everybody knew when and where it would take place. Reporters were present.

Opponents of the fight weren’t kept outside with their noses pressed against the glass or shouted down or intimidated into silence. Anybody too disinterested or not brave enough to stand and voice opposition is plain out of luck.

This was a political process that took place in the most political of all cities, and I’m sick of some who are conflicted up to their ears screaming that my buddy Michael Brown is any more guilty of a conflict of interest than anybody else in this town.

All this region does traditionally is its “just say no” routine to everything from a downtown football stadium to a Disney theme park to new cell towers, then spend the next 10 years in regret.

Washington, in particular, has been The City That Doesn’t Work for the last 35 years, largely because people are too scared or beaten down to be proactive about anything. So whatever Brown and the commission did to rally this show of support for the fight, good. Politics is more than just talk.

The granting of a license to Tyson by the D.C. Boxing and Wrestling Commission should land the Lewis-Tyson fight at MCI Center. Reports are that Lewis hasn’t even applied any place else. I’m not going to engage in city bashing, but let me ask you: Do you think the fighters, promoters and Showtime would rather this fight take place in the nation’s capital or Detroit? The nation’s capital or Memphis? Please.

Maybe now, Shelly Finkel, Tyson’s adviser, can stop running around telling every town in America that it’s the leading candidate to host the fight. If Lewis, who after all is the champ, wanted to fight in London or Denmark, wouldn’t he have pressed the issue weeks ago when Las Vegas bowed out?

And let’s get one other thing straight. My colleague, Thomas Boswell, says that a projected $6 million to $10 million isn’t revenue for a metropolitan area as large as this one. Out-of-work service industry folks can’t hold out for the $50 million payday.

A limousine driver or small business caterer who has worked sporadically since September would be happy with a couple weeks of guaranteed work. So would his wife and children.

I must not have said this clearly enough in a column a couple of weeks ago, so I’ll try it once more: If the District of Columbia doesn’t successfully put on a series of international events starting with the fight--that’s starting with this fight--then wave goodbye to any serious bid for the 2012 Olympics.

Now, back to Tyson.

There’s a huge and legitimate question of whether he can even get into shape to fight by June 8. Also, Tyson will have had only six fights in five years if he meets Lewis in June. Of those six, none was legitimate.

What Tyson owes the people who have more or less embraced him here is to actually try, not to bite somebody or break his arm, but to fight. Maybe he remembers when he used to do that. Maybe if Don King is kept far enough away from this affair, Tyson will have another bout ... and remember what a great fighter he was 10 years ago.

I’ve been in favor of D.C. having this fight all along but acknowledge the risks involved in playing host to a championship fight--everything from security concerns to fulfilling the notion that a legit athletic competition is actually being staged.

Trying to bite off Evander Holyfield’s ear or break Francois Botha’s arm aren’t what I had in mind. Nor is beating up pugs with the names Savarese, Norris or Francis.

Tyson issued what amounted to a prepared statement of thanks Tuesday night. I don’t want to hear that. Show us, Mike.

You lived about 12 miles from where the big fight should be contested. You partied in D.C., you walked into car dealerships and grocery stores here, watched other sporting events from the best seats. I know for a fact you hosted events for kids at your house in Bethesda, carpooled on occasion without getting into fights with other motorists. The point is, you should have enough familiarity and respect for the people and issues here to care about how this thing turns out.

D.C.’s challenge was to attract and sanction this fight. Tyson’s challenge now is to treat the District and the event with the same decency and respect with which he’s been treated.