Tyson denied licence to box

Tyson told the commissioners: 'It's rough out here'

Mike Tyson has had his application for a boxing licence in Nevada rejected.

The decision, after a three-hour hearing in Las Vegas, has thrown Tyson's world heavyweight title fight with Lennox Lewis into doubt.

The five-person Nevada State Athletic Commission voted four to one to reject the application.

The fight had been scheduled for 6 April at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

The panel's action opened the way for a search for an alternative venue for the bout, which the World Boxing Council (WBC) has said it will sanction outside Nevada.

You don't know my horror stories - I've never had a single friend in my life

Mike Tyson

Tyson left the hearing minutes before the vote, saying: "I didn't think I was going to get license, but (adviser) Shelly Finkel was forcing me to come anyway."

Tyson, wearing a light grey suit, appeared to bristle at times during the tough questioning that marked the near three-hour hearing.

"I'm not Mother Theresa and I'm not Charles Manson either," he said.

"Just treat me equally. I don't care if you ban me for life - just ban somebody else who does the same thing."

Tyson needed to convince a majority of the panel that he deserved the chance to fight again in the state, despite a decade of antics that have often overshadowed his fearsome presence in the ring.

All five commissioners, who are appointed by Nevada's governor Kenny Guinn, had earlier vowed to keep an open mind about the matter until after the hearing.

Lack of control

"Nobody wanted this fight more than me," commissioner Dr. Tony Alamo said after the hearing.

"Unfortunately his actions, his lack of control, put us in this position."

Although Tyson appeared to trigger the brawl with Lewis at last week's New York press conference, he told the Nevada boxing board that he had been provoked by one of the champion's bodyguards.

"I'm doing great. I was doing magnificent until that guy hit me the other day," said Tyson.

The 35-year-old fighter was also asked about the obscene tirade he launched at journalists after the brawl with Lewis had subsided.

"After the mayhem, I came out and a gentleman said something that I found offensive," Tyson told the commissioners.

The Lewis-Tyson fight could now proceed in the Far East

"I had been humiliated and embarrassed, so I decided to humiliate him.

"At that time I didn't care if I was right or wrong. He violated me, so I violated him."

Tyson appeared to struggle with the high-pressure situation and, when a commissioner asked how he was feeling, he said: "It's rough out here, man."

During the course of the hearing which Tyson had described as the most important moment of his life, the boxer was questioned about his reported use of the drug Zoloft to control his violent mood swings.

Tyson said he was not taking medication now but disagreed when commissioner Amy Ayoub told him that she did not consider the boxer, who has made over $200m in his career, a victim.

"You don't know me. You don't know if I'm a victim or not. You don't know my horror stories," he said.

Asked about his psychiatric evaluation, Tyson said: "I'm crazy but I'm not crazy like that. I don't want to kill or rape nobody or nothing like that."

Vegas loses out

Luther Mack, the chairman of the commission, asked Tyson whether his friends could keep him out of trouble.

"I haven't had a single friend in my life," Tyson said.

"My experience of life produced the person I am and I have never been successful with friends."

Popular opinion had been stacked against Tyson having his Nevada licence renewed.

But the stakes were also high for Las Vegas, which was hit hard by the travel crisis that took hold after the attacks on New York and Washington on 11 September.

Promoters have said the fight would carry a $150m purse, making it the richest bout in boxing history.

Meanwhile, Las Vegas prosecutors are considering filing rape charges against Tyson stemming from the allegations of a local woman.

They are expected to make a decision later this week.