Tyson, Francis Prepare To Rumble
Although Mike Tyson was 21 pounds lighter than Julius Francis when they weighed in today for their fight, he certainly was happy to demonstrate his heavy purchasing power.
The world former heavyweight champion, who will earn $8 million to $560,000 for his British opponent on Saturday night, weighed in at 223 3/4 pounds. That included more than $1.6 million in jewelry weight unknown Tyson bought during the last week in England
As soon as he stepped onto the scale, Tyson began twirling his hair with his left hand. It appeared to be a deliberate attempt to show off a diamond-encrusted watch and bracelet. He also wore a huge necklace.
Soon, the fighters stood staring at each other for photographers. Tyson smirked and appeared to have trouble trying not to laugh. He eventually turned away, while Francis held his stare.
"He's kind of fat," Tyson said of Francis, who weighed 244 1/2 pounds. "He can't hit me with his eyes. I'm cool, I'm relaxed and I'm ready to fight."
The weigh-in was delayed an hour until after the rest of the undercard boxers had been on the scale. Tyson got there four minutes before the rescheduled time and was made to wait 13 minutes until the arrival of Francis, the British heavyweight champion.
During the delay, the only moment of drama occurred when a table collapsed under the weight of photographers and reporters. No one was hurt.
Eventually, Francis arrived wearing the same headphones and wrap-around shades he had at Thursday's head-to-head news conference. The British fighter wore them throughout the news conference as if he didn't want to hear what Tyson had to say.
Tyson is a huge favorite. Few observers expect Francis to last more than three rounds.
Tyson's power and versatility are expected to be too much for Francis, who lost his previous three fights before beating three compatriots. In his most recent fight against a world-ranked opponent, Francis was knocked out in two rounds by Vitali Klitschko, currently the WBO champion.
But Francis isn't acting like a pushover.
"I am going to win," he has said.
Click here for additional coverage: Norris Get's None of Tyson's $
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