Okay, so what do I know?

I'll be the first to admit that I championed the cause of the revamped Mike Tyson, that I was pulling for him to train hard, be a good boy, fight himself out of debt and regain the world heavyweight title. And I thought he would pull it off, too.

But on Friday, July 30th, in Louisville, Kentucky, where a former great heavyweight champion named Muhammad Ali started his career, the career of another former great heavyweight champion may have ended. It was here where the Baddest Man On The Planet was knocked out in the fourth round by little-known British heavyweight Danny Williams.

Williams is the type of fighter that a prime Mike Tyson used to obliterate in his heyday. he was supposed to be a tune-up for 'Iron' Mike, as he made his ascent up the heavyweight ladder for possibly the last time. But after sustaining Tyson's frenetic attack in the first three rounds, he started to fight back and landed a series of punches which floored the former champ. Tyson's manager Shelley Finkel claims that his fighter tore a ligament in his left knee early in the fight, but Tyson's trainer Freddie Roach said he would talk to Mike and suggest retirement.

So maybe Mike Tyson will fade into 'bolivian' after all.

The irony of all this has a lot to do with the hypocrisy of the mainstream media. When Tyson was bad, he was REALLY bad, and the press loved him for it, but ridiculed and demonized him. He was the menacing, big black nigger that pulverized his opponents and provided great sound bytes; he allowed the press to have their cake and eat it, too.

But when Tyson was 'baptized' and humbled by Lennox Lewis, he started showing a kinder, gentler side of himself that seemed, for the most part, genuine. But a kinder, gentler Mike Tyson isn't as newsworthy, so he was written off as a shot fighter, which may be the case. But Tyson looked great in the earlygoing against Williams, and if the claim that he injured himself is true, then the writing of Mike Tyson's obituary by sadistic sports writers who otherwise never cover the sweet science is a bit premature (however, an injury like the one Tyson allegedly sustained can put him out of comission for a long time).

Of course, I'm not suggesting that Tyson could still compete at the same level of his younger years. That's ludicrous. But if Tyson's knee heels quickly and the loss weighs little on him psychologically, than he will still be able to generate interest in his wounded, dying boxing career. Tyson-Holyfield III. Tyson-Jones. Tyson-Toney. Either one of these fights could provide him with at least half of the dough he needs to pay off his $30 million debt. So while the freak show and reality television producers lurk in the shadows of parasitic sensationalism with dollar signs in their eyes, Tyson doesn't have to stoop to those levels just yet. And it's still not too late for him to have the last laugh.

As long as Mike Tyson is alive, he will always peak the curiosity of a Tyson-obsessed general public. And whatever event has Mike Tyson's name attached to it, the sheep will flock.