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Ohio, Sep 29: Mike Tyson has announced the launch of "Mike Tyson's World Tour," in which he will fight in a series of four-round exhibition bouts.

He announced this in a press conference in Youngstown, Ohio on Thursday.

The former heavyweight champion who last fought in June 2005, losing to the unheralded Kevin McBride, will return to the ring on October 20.

He will fight at the 6,000-seat Chevrolet Centre in Youngstown for a pay-per-view event against former sparring partner Corey "T-Rex" Sanders.

Bad shape

Tyson said that he was nervous to be back in front of an audience and in inner turmoil, his recent years marked by embarrassing fights - inside and out of the ring - and staggering debt.

The 40-year-old recently trained in a makeshift ring at a Las Vegas hotel to help pay off his debt.

It was that experience though that made him realise that people still want to see him in the ring.

"I was a little overweight. I was smoking too much. So I said I'm going to get in shape. I started getting in shape and the Hotel said if Mike's going to train why doesn't he train in Las Vegas. So I started training in Las Vegas and the massive crowds started showing up - 2,000 people a day.

"So I said, wow. I started feeling the adrenaline and I said, 'why don't we have boxing exhibitions?' And Sterling (Promoter Sterling McPherson) suggested that we do it across the country and across the world. He started getting offers," he said.

Pay debts

On Thursday, the man who vowed to eat Lennox Lewis' children and bit off a piece of Evander Holyfield's ear, seemed to accept his current position and emphasised that he's in no mood for a comeback.

He said that the "Mike Tyson's World Tour" wouldn't generate enough money to pay off his debts.

"The money I make here is not going to help any of my bills really from a tremendous standpoint. But I'm going to feel better about myself. I'm not going to be depressed."

Tyson said that he was unsure what the exhibitions would actually look like. His goal on the tour, he said, is to entertain people and to enjoy boxing for a change.

Promoter Sterling McPherson is attempting to add former lightweight champ Paul Spadafora to the Tyson tour.

Spadafora was paroled earlier this year after spending seven months in prison for shooting his fiancee in 2003 in Pittsburgh.

Also on the card is former 2003 Pan-Am Games silver medallist Juan McPherson.

He unsuccessfully fought in court to win a spot on the 2004 US Olympic team after being medically disqualified because of a neck injury suffered in the ring. No other dates have been scheduled for the tour.