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Mills Lane, Hall of Fame boxing referee, dies at 85

FILE - Referee Mills Lane signals a 2-point deduction toward one of the judges after Mike Tyson bit the ear of Evander Holyfield during their WBA heavyweight boxing match June 28, 1997, in Las Vegas. Lane, the Hall of Fame boxing referee who was the third man in the ring when Tyson bit Holyfield’s ear, died Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. He was 85. Lane had suffered a stroke in 2002 and son Tommy said his father had taken a significant turn for the worse recently before entering hospice care Friday. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File) FILE - Referee Mills Lane smiles during undercard weigh-ins for the Evander Holyfield-Mike Tyson boxing bout in Las Vegas, on June 27, 1997. Lane, the Hall of Fame boxing referee who was the third man in the ring when Tyson bit Holyfield’s ear, died Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. He was 85. Lane had suffered a stroke in 2002 and son Tommy said his father had taken a significant turn for the worse recently before entering hospice care on Friday. (AP Photo/Jack Dempsey, File) FILE - Boxing referee Mills Lane, pumps his fist while being inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame during the annual induction ceremony in Canastota, N.Y., June 9, 2013. Lane, the Hall of Fame boxing referee who was the third man in the ring when Tyson bit Holyfield’s ear, died Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. He was 85. Lane had suffered a stroke in 2002 and son Tommy said his father had taken a significant turn for the worse recently before entering hospice care on Friday. (AP Photo/Heather Ainsworth, File) FILE - Evander Holyfield has his right ear checked by referee Mills Lane after he was bit on the ear by Mike Tyson during the third round of their WBA heavyweight boxing match June 28, 1997, in Las Vegas. Lane, the Hall of Fame boxing referee who was the third man in the ring when Tyson bit Holyfield’s ear, died Tuesday, Dec. 6, 2022. He was 85. Lane had suffered a stroke in 2002 and son Tommy said his father had taken a significant turn for the worse recently before entering hospice care Friday. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill, File)
Mills Lane, Hall of Fame boxing referee, dies at 85