Lewis sues King over 'Tyson rematch death threats'

Lennox Lewis is suing Don King for £250m (€348.5m), claiming the boxing promoter used death threats to stop him from organising a rematch with Mike Tyson.

The heavyweight champion alleges King organised a plot to snatch Tyson back from his current promoters.

This allegedly included threatening the life of Jeff Wald, Tyson’s friend and adviser, according to the lawsuit filed in the New York Supreme Court.

King is also accused of bribing Tyson’s friend Jackie Rowe to help keep the boxer sequestered in a Manhattan hotel room and convince him to pull out of a deal to fight Lewis in June.

“What happened was disgraceful,” said Lewis’s lawyer, Judd Burstein. “Don King should be hanging his head in shame.”

The suit claims King cost Lewis €9m by keeping Tyson off a June 21 fight card in Los Angeles and another €22.3m by stopping him from signing a deal for an eventual rematch between the two fighters.

It alleges that King is desperate to get Tyson back because he fears losing a €90.6m lawsuit the boxer filed against him when they split six years ago.

Tyson accuses the promoter of stealing money from him in the suit, which is scheduled to go to court in September.