Boxing
TYSON TO MEET DOUGLAS: Mike Tyson will make his latest comeback against perhaps his biggest nemesis when he fights Buster Douglas on Oct. 2 at the MGM Grand Garden.Tyson promoter Dan Goossen denied a deal had been struck, but the Washington Times, CNN/SI and the New York Daily News all reported the news Tuesday and Wednesday and a source confirmed it to the Las Vegas Review-Journal.
Tyson lost his undisputed heavyweight championship to Douglas in one of the most shocking upsets in boxing history when he was knocked out in the 10th round of their fight on Feb. 11, 1990, in Tokyo. Douglas went off as a 42-1 underdog but dominated the bout and put Tyson out with a series of punches in the 10th.
Douglas lost the title to Evander Holyfield in his first defense, then was out of boxing for six years.
Auto racing
GORDON SETS LAP RECORD: Maybe they named the wrong road after Jeff Gordon.
A day after celebrating his 28th birthday and having a street in nearby Pittsboro, Ind. -- where he spent most of his teen years -- named after him, Gordon had another big day on the 21/2-mile oval at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway.
The Kid set an Indy stock car qualifying record with a lap of 179.612 mph, grabbing his third pole in six tries on the track where he is the only two-time winner of NASCAR's Brickyard 400.
He broke the record of 179.394 set last August by Ernie Irvan in taking the top spot for Saturday's race.
Track and field
CUBAN CLAIMS 'DIRTY TRICK': Claiming to be the unwitting victim of a "dirty trick," Cuban high jumper Javier Sotomayor angrily disputed the positive cocaine test that cost him his Pan American Games gold medal.
"I am innocent," the world record-holder told foreign reporters as he left his home Thursday in the fashionable Miramar neighborhood.
In an interview published and broadcast by Cuba's state media, Sotomayor said he doesn't even take vitamins. He pointed out that countless previous drug tests at competitions and by Cuba's official sports doctors had all showed negative results.
"I have only seen that substance in the movies," Sotomayor said about cocaine in an interview with the Communist Party daily Granma. "I am the victim of a maneuver, a dirty trick."
The Sotomayor case is the biggest drug scandal in track and field since Canadian sprinter Ben Johnson was suspended and stripped of his gold medal after testing positive for an anabolic steroid at the 1988 Seoul Olympics.
So far, Sotomayor has talked only to Cuba's government-controlled media, which stand behind his claims of innocence. Cuban officials have charged that Sotomayor was framed, and that the cocaine must have been slipped into his food or drink before the competition as part of a plot by Cuba's enemies.
Golf
GEIBERGER STILL HOT: Riding the momentum of his first PGA Tour victory, Brent Geiberger shot a 7-under-par 65 Thursday to take the first-round lead in the Buick Open.
Tom Kite came back from the land of golf's near-dead to post one of his best rounds in a dismal year, a 66 that left him a stroke off the lead.
SHORTS OK'D FOR PGA: Caddies will be allowed to wear shorts next week in the PGA Championship if the heat index is over 100 degrees, the first time the PGA of America has allowed shorts in its premier tournament.
The PGA of America generally follows the decorum set out by the PGA Tour. Spokesman Julius Mason said Thursday it is following the same guidelines the tour is using during a three-week test that concludes this week in the Buick Open.
Softball
UTAH SHOCKERS ARE NO. 1: The Utah Shockers from Sandy captured the 14-and-under AFA girls fastpitch national championship from among 65 teams nationally. The Shockers came out of the loser's bracket to win 4 straight games en route to the championship on Sunday.
They first beat the Beaumont Blast from Texas 7-0, then earned their way into the championship game by defeating the TexasGalveston Stars 10-7, setting up the championship game with the undefeated Mission Viejo, Calif., Eliminators.
Because this was a double elimination tournament, the Shockers needed to defeat the Eliminators twice for the national championship.
In the first game, the Shockers game through with a 5-0 victory to set up the winner take all championship final, which they dominated 7-1 to claim their first national championship.
Preps
PREP VOLLEYBALL TRYOUTS: All high school volleyball tryouts will take place beginning next Monday morning. Interested players should contact their local volleyball coaches for information.