Former world heavyweight boxing champion Mike Tyson was arrested and charged with third-degree assault and disorderly conduct Saturday morning after a brawl with two men at a Brooklyn hotel, police said.

Tyson was held in custody at the 84th Precinct in north Brooklyn until just before 4:30 p.m. EDT (20:30 GMT).

He was then released, sporting a bandaged right hand, after qualifying for a misdemeanor "desk appearance ticket". The ticket freed him, with the requirement that he appear in front of a judge at a certain date, often in 30 days, police said.

Tyson, the self-described "baddest" man on the planet, suffered minor cuts on his hands and was treated at the scene, police said.

The boxer became involved in a 5:30 a.m. (0930 GMT) dispute with two men and a woman at a Marriott hotel, where he was a guest.

A fight erupted and the two men, 24-year-old Nestor Alvarez and 31-year-old Samuel Valez, allegedly picked up an object from the hotel's lobby and "menaced" Tyson with it, police said.

The two men were charged with menacing and disorderly conduct. One of the men and the woman were taken to Bellevue Hospital for unknown injuries, police said.

Police did not have information on what caused the fight.

Tyson has had several highly publicised run-ins with the law.

He was convicted and imprisoned for three years for raping a former beauty queen in 1991. Last month, Tyson, who denied the rape, said he was so angry he now wanted to rape the woman.