Klitschko promoter in New York; threatens legal action against Lewis if he fights Tyson
Associated Press - January 28, 2003
HAMBURG, Germany (AP) - Vitali Klitschko's promoter threatened to sue WBC heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis for breach of contract if he fights Mike Tyson next instead of his own fighter.
German Promoter Klaus-Peter Kohl was in New York Tuesday in efforts to salvage the fight against Lewis and plans to meet with Lewis' manager Adrian Ogen, and the fighter's lawyer, Judd Burnstein.
``Our position is clear, either Lewis honors the contract to fight Vitali Klitschko or there are only two possibilities - we will seek millions in court or he will be stripped of his WBC title,'' said Rainer Koppke, a spokesman for Klitschko's promotion company, Universum Boxing.
Kohl said on Monday he and Ogen, representing Lewis promoters Lion Promotion, had signed a contract in December, setting up an April fight between the WBC beltholder and Klitschko.
``I have to make this clear - I regard this as breach of contract,'' Kohl said. ``In the next few days, I will examine all my possibilities for legal action.''
Klitschko's camp was surprised by the statement from Burnstein on Friday that negotiations had collapsed between Lewis and the big 2.02 meter (6-ft-8) Ukrainian, the WBC's No. 1 challenger.
Burnstein said Lewis would prefer to fight Tyson in June and is watching how the former champion fares against Clifford Etienne on Feb. 22 in Memphis, Tennessee.
``Now that there will be no April fight, Lennox has a contractual obligation to consider Mike Tyson as his June opponent and looks forward to seeing how Tyson performs against Clifford Etienne,'' Burnstein said.
Lewis and Tyson have a rematch clause after their much-anticipated fight in June concluded with Lewis ending a one-sided bout in the eighth round.
Koppke said Klitschko's camp believes Lewis is afraid of the Ukrainian fighter, but the latest development is mainly prompted by money.
``Lewis thinks he can make more money fighting Tyson, against whom he can't lose, than Klitschko, against whom he could lose,'' Koppke said.
Tyson said he didn't think he could beat Lewis after their uneven fight in June.
Lewis was once undisputed heavyweight champion, but gave up two of the belts, the last one so that he did not have to fight No. 1 IBF contender Chris Byrd. Byrd later went on to beat Evander Holyfield in December to win the vacant IBF title.
Klitschko is the older brother of Wladimir Klitschko, the WBO champion.
