Mike Tyson remains unclear about the details surrounding the death in May of his 4-year-old daughter Exodus – and the boxing legend prefers it that way, he says.

"Because if I know, then there might be a blame for it," Tyson, 43, tells Oprah Winfrey on her show set to air Monday, Oct. 12. "And if there's somebody to blame for it, there will be a problem."

An unconscious Exodus was found by her 7-year-old brother, Miguel. She was entangled in a cord, dangling from an exercise treadmill, and subsequently died of her injuries.


Though notoriously hot-tempered, the heavyweight champ also says that focusing on his family has kept him from reacting with anger to the tragic event. "I was so happy that I had the tools in life, you know, to not go in that direction because I've been that direction," Tyson says. "My family – that's my biggest asset."

After he refers to his daughter as "a little angel," Winfrey replies that she believes that's what Exodus has become.

"I don't know, Oprah," says Tyson. "I'd like to believe that, and that sounds great."