After a week in which fight fans have been lapping up every nuance of boxing's confrontation of the year, Mike Tyson versus Frank Warren, now comes the sideshow of Tyson versus Lou Savarese at Hampden Park. As the fighters weighed in yesterday, Warren was once again conspicuous by his absence, raising speculation that the promoter will not even be there tonight to oversee his own show.

Warren continued to maintain a diplomatic silence, and the Tyson camp also dead-batted questions that were designed to reveal more about the Tyson-Warren row that has commanded headlines this week.

Against this backdrop it would be easy to forget the telling, unguarded observation from Tyson's current trainer Tommy Brooks that his fighter's less-than-perfect preparations may have left him vulnerable inside the ring.

And the words of one of the men who preceded Brooks in the job, Teddy Atlas, spoken three years ago after Tyson bit a chunk out of Evander Holyfield's ear, have a strange relevance to the present day. Atlas branded Tyson's behaviour as "the cowardly act of a bully who could not stand the thought of being undressed in public".

In one of boxing's most disgraceful moments, Tyson had sought refuge in street thuggery when faced with the prospect of a second humiliating defeat. Now serious questions are again being raised about whether he is in the right frame of mind to be allowed through the ropes.

Savarese, 34, a gentle, smiling Texan, seems as unlikely a fighter as it is possible to imagine but he knows, as every heavyweight does post-Holyfield, that Tyson can be beaten and broken.

He has drawn heart from the achievement of Buster Douglas a decade ago when Tyson was handed his first defeat. "Buster Douglas was 45 to 1 against winning the title, but he did it," Savarese said. "I'm going into this fight believing that I will win, absolutely. And anybody who thinks I am just here to pick up a pay cheque (around £600,000 sterling) does not know too much about me as a fighter."

The words are impressive but the test will come when the first bell sounds and the man whose principal weapon is intimidation bears down on him. Will he crumble, as Frank Bruno did when he surrendered his world title to Tyson four years ago? Or will he succumb to a punch which does no more than part his hair, as Bruce Seldon did the same year? Or will he be as driven as Douglas and show the indomitable spirit of Holyfield?

Holyfield's tactics are the ones Savarese hopes to emulate, surviving the inevitable opening onslaught of Tyson hooks before forcing the 33-year-old former champion on to the back foot, where a lack of mobility and an inability to counter-punch effectively can be exposed.

The fight may be more intriguing than the cynics would suggest. Savarese is easy to hit and sometimes worryingly courageous but he has gone the distance with huge punchers such as Michael Grant and George Foreman and had a one-round knockout win over a faded Douglas two years ago. He has been hand-picked to make Tyson look good but is no soft touch.

Considerable doubts surround Tyson in the 52nd fight of his 16-year professional career. Frans Botha boxed Tyson's head off before walking into a right hook which might have dented a Chieftain tank when they fought last year, and Tyson was lucky not to be slung out when he tried to break the South African's arm as brawling continued after the bell.

Against Orlin Norris in November, Tyson felt it necessary to deck his man with a hook thrown so long after the bell that Norris had dropped his gloves and was about to turn and return to his corner.

Yet still the fans roll in. Whether it is to witness a circus freak show or to see a man who still gives occasional glimpses of a rare talent is a moot point, but the man who will forever carry the words "convicted rapist" alongside his name retains his fascination.

The most recent form line was the meaningless two-round annihilation of Julius Francis on Tyson's British debut. Familiar noises are now being made from inside the camp about how awesome Tyson looks, but if so why have his final training sessions been behind closed doors? The Warren dispute, a failing marriage and the recent death of a close friend all raise questions about his mental state.

The logical prediction is a Tyson victory inside six rounds but it is not difficult to visualise him losing confidence if Savarese survives into the later stages of the fight, and the possibility of him panicking and doing something stupid, yet again, looks worryingly real.