Ready Or Not … Foreman Wants Tyson For $100 Million, But Next Up Is No-Name Schultz

If George Foreman hadn’t been laughing so much at his own one-liners Wednesday, he probably would have been crying. See, Foreman is holding half of a lottery ticket worth $100 million, but it looks like he’ll never cash it because Mike Tyson, who is holding the other half, apparently has been advised to walk away from what would be by far the richest fight in boxing history.

There will be other “richest fights in history” for Tyson when he returns to the ring. They won’t be worth as much as Tyson-Foreman, which promoter Bob Arum has said would gross $250 million and net the two fighters a $100 million purse to split, but Tyson can amass a huge fortune fighting nobodies. Foreman won’t go hungry. He’s raking in a fortune in endorsements for becoming, at 45, the oldest heavyweight champion in history.

But Tyson was Foreman’s pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

So, Foreman masks the disappointment with the humor that has become his stock-in-trade and a touch of sarcasm possibly intended to bait Tyson into making the match. “Mike Tyson can be the future,” Foreman said at a news conference to promote the first defense of his IBF title against German Axel Schulz on Saturday at the MGM Grand in a fight televised by HBO. “He’s a tough cookie. But he’s got to be careful with this big piece of cake. I’m the cake.”

After Foreman’s electrifying 10thround knockout of Michael Moorer on Nov. 5 at the MGM Grand Garden, Tyson did an interview from his Indiana prison cell in which he supposedly said he could get out of jail and beat Foreman the next day. Despite the high stakes, he has shown no inclination to do that. Foreman, who turned 46 Jan. 10, said he could understand why.

“It would be wrong for me to fight him when he just got out of jail,” Foreman said tongue-in-cheek. “It would be like taking advantage of him. I’m too old for him. Anybody would tell a guy like that, ‘You can’t be away for three years and fight a guy like Foreman.’ “

Putting himself in Tyson’s Gucci loafers and Armani suit, Foreman said it must be hard for Tyson to imagine “a 46-year-old man riding herd as the heavyweight champion. ‘He’s the toughest man on the planet, and he’s older than dirt.’

“It says Tyson’s people are scared of such a fight. There’s no other way to put it.”

There are many complicated obstacles to a fight matching the oldest man to win the heavyweight title with the youngest to win it. Foreman has an exclusive contract with HBO, while Tyson signed an exclusive deal with Showtime. Foreman also has said he wouldn’t want Tyson’s promoter, Don King, involved.

But there are ways around those problems. As Foreman’s publicist, Mort Sharnik, said, “Money conquers all.”

So, maybe it’s something else. Maybe Tyson or his handlers really are afraid of Foreman. On the surface, it would seem Tyson’s speed and power would be too much for the old man to handle. Remember, Foreman was losing badly to Moorer when he landed the KO punch.

But Foreman also has a history of great success against short heavyweights like Tyson. He bounced Joe Frazier off the canvas six times in two rounds to win the world title the first time in 1973 and later knocked out Frazier in five rounds in 1976. Tyson, of course, lost the title in shocking fashion when he was knocked out by the much bigger Buster Douglas, a 40-1 underdog.

Comparing Tyson to Frazier, Foreman said, “Frazier would have won. He was the greatest heavyweight fighter under 6 feet. Then, Marciano because he was undefeated. Tyson didn’t have enough time (as champ to surpass Frazier and Marciano).”

Foreman recognized Moorer’s vulnerability and ended a 17-month retirement to take one last shot at regaining the title. Similarly, Foreman believes Tyson is made to order for him.

“I know how to fight a guy with power and rage,” Foreman said. “Tyson, when he left (for prison), had incredible power and rage.”

Foreman may yet attempt to contact Tyson directly to see if they can put the two halves of their lottery ticket together. “I’d like to see him,” Foreman said. “Tyson is still a boxing hero. If he’s back in the ring, it’s good. I’d like to see him.”