UK set for Lewis v Tyson

Reigning world heavyweight champion Lewis in action

Reigning heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis could take on Mike Tyson in Britain before the end of the year.

Boxing promoter Frank Warren is not ruling out the chances that Lewis and the former undisputed champion could stage a world title fight this side of the Atlantic.

Warren was speaking on BBC Radio 5 Live as he prepares to take Tyson to Scotland for next month's controversial clash with Lou Savarese.

Lewis defends his crown against Francois Botha in July, but Warren admits that the prospect of a meeting with the man who once took the heavyweight division by storm is a distinct possibility.

Asked whether the bout could go ahead in the UK, Warren said: "One of the problems is that both boxers are tied up with different American TV companies, but if that could be overcome I think that would be great.

Tyson is set for his second fight in the UK in June

"I think there's a chance - but I also think that Francois Botha is going to give him Lewis a shock."

Warren's comments came as he defended the decision by Home Secretary Jack Straw to allow Tyson back into Britain for his fight at Hampden Park on 24 June.

Protesters argue that the convicted rapist should not be granted a visa despite a trouble-free visit for his last bout in Manchester.

Furious response

But Rosanna Cunningham, SMP for Perth, said: "I'm basically against what seems to be a glorification of somebody who has shown such violent tendencies in the past.

"This is about violence to women - and it's about a man who effectively, I think, exhibits a kind of an uncontrolled aggression.

"We are paying him and lauding him despite the fact that we're also trying to send a message out to our young people, especially our young boys, that that kind of aggression - particularly against women - is simply not acceptable."

BBC News Online has also learned Home Secretary Jack Straw had a private meeting with Mike Tyson's representatives 12 days before plans for a bout in Glasgow were announced.

Warren believes the fight could be held in UK

Also at the meeting were Glasgow MP Jimmy Wray and Lord Brooks, a British Boxing Board of Control steward, who sought to clarify the requirements for Tyson's visa application.

The revelation has provoked a furious response from MSPs opposed to the former heavyweight boxer and convicted rapist's entry to the UK.

Glasgow Maryhill MP Maria Fyfe and other MPs opposed to Tyson said they were not allowed to see Mr Straw and had been "fobbed off" with Home Office Minister Barbara Roche.

The disclosure was expected to inflame a growing constitutional row between Westminster and Edinburgh.