ESPN Boxing Commentator Teddy Atlas is one of the most well known and respected experts in the boxing community. Though he doesn?t really have a velvet, crooning voice, Atlas survives and thrives in the business due to his vast knowledge of boxing fundamentals and history.
His own brief career in amateur boxing in his younger years ended due to a serious back injury, but he went on to learn the craft of training from one of the best teachers in the boxing game: Cus D?Amato. The trainer famed for developing a juvenile delinquent Mike Tyson into the baddest man on the planet also groomed Atlas as an amateur boxer. Atlas continued working with D?Amato as an assistant trainer and later went on to work with Michael Moorer, Barry McGuigan, Donny Lalonde, and Alexander Povetkin, among others.
Asked about the prospects of Boxing?s most talked about match-up, Atlas betrays a certain bias towards Floyd Mayweather, Junior. ?I think that Pacquiao and Mayweather is more probable on the Mayweather side now than ever before,? said Atlas. ?Because, Mayweather?s having legal problems. He?s having personal problems.? He goes on to point out that ?lawyers cost money.?
Atlas calls the potential bout between Manny Pacquiao (54-3-2, 38 KOs) and Floyd Mayweather, Jr. (42-0, 26 KOs) ?the biggest fight out there right now.? He points to the opposition Pacquiao?s faced in recent years as lacking and ?perfectly positioned for Pacquiao to dominate.? He adds that he takes nothing away from Pacquiao?s skill and ability as a boxer, but also cautions that before he?s crowned the greatest boxer in the galaxy, ?you should give him a chance to fight someone who?s physically viable.?
Atlas refused to delve into Mayweather?s personal struggles beyond explaining that the unbeaten boxer will have to work through his troubles on his own. ?I happen to like Floyd,? said Atlas. ?We all make mistakes. I see a kid that?s a smart kid, and believe it or not he?s a sensitive kid, and obviously a kid that has issues like everybody has. I wish him well in dealing with them. As far as an athlete, I?d like to see him face a good litmus test like Pacquiao would be.? Atlas is convinced only Mayweather can help determine how great Pacquiao really is.
Looking at the sport as a whole, Atlas commends the courage it takes for any fighter to enter the ring and compete. He also points to how anyone who works hard enough can succeed in boxing. ?What I like about the sport of boxing is that any man, any woman, any person that?s properly prepared, properly determined to do this, they can even the playing field on any given day. No matter what their background economically, personally, or what part of the world they come from, what ethnic group they come from. It doesn?t matter. What matters is how determined they are, how prepared they are to do something that?s really rare in this world. There?s no other sport that really gives you that kind of opportunity. You can be as good as anybody and maybe better. You can find a way.?
He also explains that boxing is a transformative sport, especially when it comes to kids who get involved in the sport. ?I see kids that become better kids, better students, because of the confidence they learn from boxing,? said Atlas. ?That?s available to them by getting into a gym, getting direction, getting discipline, and finding out they can depend on themselves. It?s a magical place. You find out things about yourself, and there?s not many places in this world that can take you on that kind of journey. Some kids need to know they count, and they don?t find that out at home. They don?t find out on the football field. They don?t find out on the basketball court. Because there?s too many people involved. But, in the setting of the gym there?s a coach and there?s you, and there?s another person you compete against. You?re able to get a more defined idea of what you can actually push yourself to do and what you can demand of yourself. And you get to face things most people never get put in a position to face.?
Even those who don?t become champions or experts at the craft of pugilism can learn important lessons from participating in training and competition, Atlas insists. ?It serves people for the rest of their lives by just going through the process of facing yourself, facing your own demons, facing your own fears, facing your own inhibitions,? he said.
Atlas adds that a good boxer has an opportunity to prove all those people wrong who were convinced that he?d never make it in life, just by stepping into the ring and performing. ?You find out you do have substance, because you can climb up those steps and you can get in the ring. You can be nervous as Hell, your legs could be shaking, but you can go out there and behave like the kind of person that you want to be. And that?s a magical thing that a sport can offer you that,? he explains.
Atlas suggests that politicians and community leaders take a harder look at the sport for its ability to help kids become more responsible. ?A boxing gym can serve a child much better than most programs,? he contends.
The pundits who argue that boxing is no longer the powerhouse sport it used to be don?t phase Atlas at all. ?Boxing has died a million times,? he says, blaming the ?administrators? of the sport for many of the shortcomings plaguing boxing these days. He recommends one central commission for boxing to help put the sport?s best foot forward and market it better while also keeping one set of strict rules and laws to govern it. He argues many promoters are ?devoid of character? and are in an environment that ?allows them to behave that way and rewards that behavior.? He suggests that too many of these promoters are selfish and ?don?t give anything back to the sport.? Improvements could be made in the way of pensions for retirees, college boxing scholarships for high school graduates, and more comprehensive medical care, he adds.
Atlas championed those causes for years as an analyst on ESPN, but he also officially reached out to Senator John McCain. Atlas personally met with the congressman and former presidential candidate to craft formal changes that would aid boxing, but the proposed legislation that resulted never passed. Much like a presidential candidate himself, Atlas champions the ?middle class? of boxing and the plight they face that so many upper echelon fighters who achieve fame and fortune never have to deal with. He?s convinced that the ?inequities? these boxers face are what really prevents the sport from really being able to fully blossom.
Atlas considers Yuriorkis Gamboa (21-0, 16 KOs) and Demetrius Andrade (16-0, 11 KOs) the most promising prospects in the sport right now, but he also admits neither fighter has been really tested yet.
Aside from his fierce love of The Sweet Science, one of his greatest passions in life is charitable giving. He founded the Dr. Theodore Atlas Foundation (dratlasfoundation.com) in 1997 to honor his late father and give back to the next generation. The organization tackles numerous community issues in the New York area and beyond, and contributions are in no way limited to the support of boxing programs.
Teddy?s father was a physician who took a special interest in tending to the needs of the poor. He recalled that his father rarely charged those who couldn?t afford treatment, and if he did it was a minimal fee for examinations and medication they needed. ?He did that for 55 years, and he founded two hospitals,? Atlas said. ?He actually built a hospital with 22 beds in it so people could get proper hospitalization when they couldn?t afford it.?
His father?s selfless example prompted Atlas to name a foundation after him and volunteer his own time and effort to help ?take care of people that have no one to take care of them.? He explained that typical situations the foundation assists with involve children who can?t afford cancer treatment, a family that needs a handicap ramp for a disabled child, a family in need of travel costs to go out of state with a child for medical treatment, or any real medical need insurance might not pay for. He also helps run two camps that house and mentor over 250 kids. Of course, Atlas also assists local boxing programs as much as possible, but he makes sure the youth involved are performing well in school before they can train in boxing. The foundation also provides educational scholarships and incentive programs.
Atlas estimates that the charity provided around 3 to 4 million dollars in aid over the 14 years since he founded it. What sets his outfit apart from other major charities, he explains, is that every cent goes to the cases they address while other charitable enterprises often take administrative costs out of donated funds.
Atlas admits he gets nervous and frustrated at times, fearing he won?t be able to help someone who desperately needs it. The foundation runs multiple fund raising events and does receive ample donations for most of the urgent cases, but Atlas still worries about being unable to answer a call for help.
As a troubled youth himself who found his way out of a tumultuous childhood to achieve success in the sport of boxing, Teddy Atlas learned many important lessons in turning his life around. Above all he learned to give back. He will always remember where he came from and how others helped rehabilitate him and inspire him to become a responsible adult.
Atlas is grateful for his fame and his fan base, and he makes sure to thank those who enjoy listening to his commentary. ?Thanks for allowing me to go on ESPN on Friday night and talk about boxing. Because without them I could never do it,? he explains. ?And I never forget that, and I always understand that and appreciate that.?
