Is Mike Tyson WWE Bound?

Well, it had to happen. After nearly twenty years as one of the most feared men in professional boxing, Mike Tyson was knocked out by Britain's own Danny Williams in the fourth round this past Friday night.

Now, a lot of you may be wondering why I'm discussing the exploits of a boxer in a wrestling column. Well, read on.

Mike Tyson is one of the most famous people in the world at the moment, and one of the most controversial. Everyone knows of his exploits in and out of the ring, but you have to admit, at one time, Tyson really was the toughest man on the planet.

But his defeat at the hands of Williams has led many to believe that at the age of 38, his boxing career is over.

So where does that leave the man? To me, Tyson seems to be one of those people who craves the attention of the public. Although he doesn't care if he gets good or bad publicity, he needs publicity. It's like a drug to him.

Also, take into consideration that he is heavily in debt, he not only needs the public's attention, he needs their hard earned money in the form of wages and gate receipts.

Which is why I believe that, with his boxing career now practically over, Tyson may seek some fresh fame and fortune either in the mixed martial arts world, or in the professional wrestling business.

Of course, Tyson has had encounters in both worlds during his career.

It was only a few months ago when Tyson appeared at ringside for a K-1 show in Japan. There, he got into a verbal slanging match with Japan's favourite big man, Bob Sapp. For the next few weeks, there was a lot of talk about a possible Sapp/Tyson bout fought under K-1 rules, but talk of this subsided.

Given the fact that Sapp's profile has fallen since his recent MMA defeats means that a possible fight between the two men now looks dead in the water. But that doesn't mean that Tyson can't seek a future in the MMA world. There are many who would welcome the chance to get in the ring with Tyson, not just in K-1, but in Pride and the UFC as well.

Then there's the wrestling world. Tyson has had a mixed relationship with wrestling. He was due to act as a special enforcer on a live WWE telecast just before Wrestlemania VI, but pulled out at the last minute after his shock defeat to Buster Douglas. But he did appear as a special enforcer at Wrestlemania a few years later for the Steve Austin/Shawn Michaels title match. This does show that Tyson is willing to work in the wrestling business.

But when he last worked for the WWE, his hands were tied. Although Vince McMahon tried everything he could to promote a match between Tyson and Austin, Tyson's ban from boxing, and all athletic competition at the time, meant that McMahon could only promote Tyson as little more than a side-show attraction.

Should Tyson receive another call from McMahon offering him work, how would they handle Tyson's career?

I think it's safe to say that although he is physically fit, Tyson would find if difficult to train as a professional wrestler, and to be completely honest with you, I can hardly see Tyson going down to Ohio Valley and learning the hard way.

This would not be the WWE way though. With a bona fide mainstream superstar working for them, the WWE would push Tyson to the moon and put him in the spotlight immediately. At a time when they need a critical boost, they would use Tyson to gain some much needed publicity.

If they undertook this plan though, in the long term, it could do more damage than good. Wrestling fans today are more clued in than they ever have been, and in the long term they wouldn't fall for a green as hell Tyson headlining pay-per-views every month.

So where next for the man who courts controversy wherever he goes? There's word of a rematch with Williams, but the door to the worlds of mixed martial arts and professional wrestling will always remain open to a man like Mike Tyson. He may no longer possess the boxing skills that turned him into a legend in his own lifetime, but to a promoter like Vince McMahon, he could become a short-term gold mine.