LONDON -- Lennox Lewis will make the next defense of his IBC and WBC heavyweight titles against Frans Botha of South Africa on July 15.

The fight, announced Thursday, will take place three weeks after Mike Tyson, the former champion, meets Lou Savarese in Glasgow, Scotland.

Lewis, who will fight Botha at the London Arena, regards the Tyson fight as a sideshow.

"People see me all the time. They look on Tyson as a novelty," Lewis said. "They want to see who he is, this man who fights people, who's been in jail.

"It's like a movie star you don't get an opportunity to see. It's possible you may not see him again. He may go to jail for life or he may not be seen again," Lewis said.

"As far as his reception is concerned, I can understand it. But that's all hype anyway. I'm into realism."