In an exclusive interview shared via OLBG, Hall of Fame trainer and boxing analyst Teddy Atlas delivered his trademark honesty—comparing Oleksandr Usyk to Muhammad Ali, breaking down Tyson’s flaws, and even weighing in on Gervonta Davis, Jake Paul, and Conor McGregor’s current state. Atlas, never one to hold back, gave raw insight into greatness, belief, and what separates the real fighters from the rest.
Oleksandr Usyk and Ilia Topuria remind me of Muhammad Ali
“Sonny Liston was a great intimidator, Mike Tyson was a great intimidator. But they did not have the ability to go beyond that, the way Ali did. Ali wasn’t intimidating you. Ali was being real. He was making you believe something he believed: that you couldn’t beat him, that you had no choice in the matter. That’s pretty incredible. That’s special, that puts you at a place that’s special, and that’s Ali.
“But Oleksandr Usyk is a guy that gives off that persona that you’re not going to beat him. And it’s not intimidation. It’s something he believes. It’s something that he carries with him and carries it into the ring with him—in his persona, in his body language, and everything about him. In a very strong way, no braggadocio, none of that stuff. Just that there’s a belief here that only one guy can win tonight, and that one guy is him.
“I think I see it in Ilia Topuria. I think I see it in him. And again, it’s something that if you’re aware of what it is, you can recognise it. When I watched him, I felt like I recognised it.”
Usyk shows no signs of needing to retire
“He’s not showing cracks. He takes very good care of himself. He doesn’t have any bad habits, as far as we know, to impair him physically in any way. So there’s no reason to stop doing something if you’ve been given a gift to do it better than someone else.
“Do it and fulfill that great gift. Completely fulfill it by bringing it to its proper place of final destination. Get the most out of it. And then walk away without abusing it, without overstaying your welcome, without getting greedy.”
Alex Pereira is the best farewell fight for Usyk
“He’s been like a machine. The Olympics, consolidating all the Cruiserweight titles, all the wins. Winning the heavyweight title.
“But now that you know that you’re coming towards the end, he may want to do it a little differently, outside just the regular realm. And part of that is to fight Pereira.
“Pereira, he’s not a traditional boxer, he’s a big name, he’s a scary guy, he’s thought of as a sort of boogeyman in his field, of the UFC, of MMA. What better way to finish up?”
Gervonta Davis would need a ladder to knock out Jake Paul
“He might need a ladder to do it, but Tank hits him on the chin; don’t overlook it; he’s a good puncher. I know he’s at his best as a 135-pound fighter; no one needs to explain that to me. And I know he’s not a big guy in terms of height to begin with.
“But if he can punch and has good technique, and he were to land, would I be shocked, and is it possible that Tank Davis, a world-caliber fighter and puncher, could knock out a guy that much bigger? Yes, he could. That can happen.
“Now, could the bigger guy knock him out? Anyone can knock out anyone if they hit them right, so the answer is yes. But in my world, it’s not about whether you have the power to knock a guy out. It’s about, do you have the technique? Do you have the expertise? Do you have the delivery system to do it?
“And that’s how I would answer it. The smaller guy probably has a better chance here because the bigger guy, with his power and size, has worked hard to become the best he can be. But he still isn’t at the level of expertise to land the kind of punch cleanly that he would need to, even on a smaller fighter of this level of expertise.”
Dana White is the man to build a successful product in boxing
“Why do you think ESPN just dumped the contract on Top Rank? Why do you think they just did that on Top Rank after seven years? Because they were bad fights. They were bad fights, because they were using it as a farming system just to sign up guys and to continue to build their thing, their business, but not the business of boxing. Not the business that the fans were concerned about.
“Dana White, to his credit, understood the only way to build it is for people to say, ‘Wow, those were great, competitive fights.’ And he made the sport and the UFC product very profitable, very successful.
“Is he the right guy for boxing? I don’t know beyond that [what he did in the UFC]. But I know that he was the right guy to build a product that had to be built, and he understood the only way to build it was to make sure that the fan base believed in it.”
Cus D’Amato would be disappointed in Mike Tyson vs Floyd Mayweather
“I think Cus would have said, ‘You better not be doing it because you figure you don’t have enough money.’ I think that’s the first thing he would have said, because I think that’s probably what I would say. And me and Cus kind of joined at the hip a little bit. ‘You better not be doing this because you went through all your money.’
“But it’s a different world. Cus wouldn’t understand that. Cus would probably just say, ‘We worked so hard at not only building you as a fighter, but the image of you, the memory of you as a fighter. Is this where you wanted it to end?’
“Cus might have reminded Tyson that he used to look up to the old fighters, and he read about them and watched their films. Tyson always admired the old fighters—it was a big part of his education in boxing, and his thirst for boxing, his love for it, his passion for it.
“Looking up to these guys—Jack Dempsey, Henry Armstrong—and Cus would say, probably, ‘This would not be part of what they represented. Why would you want it to be what you represent?’
“There’s nothing wrong with what Tyson and Floyd are doing; it’s making money, it’s entertainment, but it’s not the entertainment Cus would have understood. Although Cus always had an eye for innovation, he did.
“But this one, he might say, ‘Are you sure that you want some kids that have never seen you fight, to remember you for this, rather than going to film and remembering you for what you are?’”
Mike Tyson relied on weakness to be strong – real men don’t do that
“Tyson was a great intimidator. The difference with him was that, rather than a strength, it was a weakness. He depended on your weakness for him to be strong. The real ones, the ‘real McCoys,’ if you will, they don’t do that. They depend on their own strengths to be strong.
“They know that that’s the only place you can be strong—from within, from you. It has to be your strength. It can never be somebody else’s weakness for you to be able to have strength. That’s not even a thought.
“Tyson didn’t bite Holyfield’s ear because he was hungry, or because he was necessarily from the streets, and he was vicious, and this is his way. No. In reality, he did it because he was weak. He did it because of a weakness. He did it to get out. He didn’t do it to project himself into the fight. He did it to get out of the fight.
“And if we were in a courtroom, what would be Exhibit A of proof? He didn’t do it once; he did it twice. After he was told, ‘You do it again, you’re out.’ Mills Lane spoke very clearly. So what did he do? He did it again. And if he had to do it a third time, he would have done it a third time.”
Anthony Joshua fighting return on undercards is a step in the right direction
“I don’t think he’s going to stay there [fighting on undercards]. I think it’s just temporary. I think right now, I think it’s a smart step. He’s a smart person. I wouldn’t make this a last step; I would make this a first step of his comeback.
“I’ve seen this before; it’s not unusual. He still has to get his confidence back; he doesn’t have it all back yet. It’s not about the money now; he’s made all that. It’s not about the adulation; he’s had all that. It’s not about the bright lights or the limelight.
“Now, it’s about putting something back together that’s been fractured. His psyche, his confidence, himself. There’s a way to do it, a right way and a wrong way. I think he’s trying to take the right way, to be honest. I think he’s being smart and honest.
“This is for him, not for the people, the promoters, or the money. This is about him finding himself, and finding out where he is and where he wants to be. The way to do it is in a quieter, less focal way—not under the lights, but in a way that serves the purpose.
“And what is the purpose? For him to answer some questions for himself in a more quiet domain. I agree, if he’s going to come back, this is the way to do it. It’s kind of like the old saying: before you just jump into the deep end, you have to start off in the shallow end, and then go to the deep end again, and get back to that. If he wants to get back to that, this would be a way of letting him know.”
I would make sure Conor McGregor leaves his current lifestyle to focus on the White House card
“It’s a tough one, simple yet tough. He’s been living a certain lifestyle that’s become a comfortable habit, making it difficult to break free. It’s like when you take on a fighter with bad habits, you have to strip them down and start fresh.
“In some ways, that’s what we’re discussing here, but instead of physical habits, it’s about other habits—your way of living, and the choices you make. He has to step away. And this White House card gives him a reason to.
“He hasn’t had a strong enough reason just to step away from those things until now.”