By Victor Salazar
Later tonight, Teddy Atlas and Joe Tessitore will make the call for the inaugural Premier Boxing Champions broadcast on ESPN from the USF Sun Bowl in Tampa Bay headlined by the hometown fighter Keith Thurman (25-0, 21 KO’s) as he takes on Brooklyn’s Luis Collazo (36-6, 19 KO’s) in a welterweight contest. The co-feature to that bout pits Detroit Middleweight Tony Harrison (21-0, 18 KO’s) against Willie Nelson (23-2-1, 13 KO’s) in Harrison’s biggest test to date.
Atlas, who is never one to pull punches says the co-main interests him more than the main fight of the evening.
“The co main is the most interesting fight on the telecast,” Atlas told BoxingScene.com “We know (Tony) Harrison is talented but we don’t know how deep that talent runs until he’s tested. We think that Willie Nelson will be that test. Nelson hasn’t been successful at the high level but he’s faced big names. He’s got good physical dimensions. He’s been tested.”
Atlas says that we will find out how talented Harrison really is this Saturday.
“Harrison hasn’t had to answer the question of being in deep,” explained Atlas. “Maybe Harrison’s talent is so great that he passes the test easily but we will see what he’s made of come Saturday night.”
As far is the main event, Atlas expects Thurman to win but doesn’t count Collazo out.
“Keith Thurman, I expect him to win,” stated Atlas. “But I’m from the old belief like Cus D’mato that a former champion is a former champion and if the stars are aligned, a former champion can find something in him that will make the night special and win him the night. To me that’s (Luis) Collazo’s only hope. If not this is a one-sided fight.”
Atlas would be more convinced on his Thurman pick had he been tested in past bouts.
“Thurman’s a guy that hasn’t really been tested either, maybe Collazo can test him,” Atlas said of the talented welterweight. “He’s shown terrific athleticism, but he hasn’t truly been tested yet. Thurman is too young and too athletic for Collazo to corner him. If Thurman had been tested already then I’d say it’d be no uncertainty but because he hasn’t, it leaves the door open.”
Thurman has been very vocal about being in the Floyd Mayweather sweepstakes, a notion that Mayweather Promotions’ CEO Leonard Ellerbe has brushed off. Atlas says Thurman has as much of a chance as anyone else at landing the fight but ultimately it’s not up to him, or the fans. That choice is made by Mayweather and his team.
“Everyone’s calling out Mayweather; they called out (Muhammad) Ali, (Mike) Tyson, and Sugar Ray (Leonard) because you get paid when you fight them,” explained Atlas.
“That’s the way it is, you’re supposed to call those guys out. So the true answer is yes, maybe he does become legitimate if blows away Collazo. If someone is going to fight Mayweather then why not Thurman, especially because fans want it. But in reality this isn’t going down the road for a politician, the vote has already been punched. Mayweather and his team will make their decision but aren’t going to be swayed by the public. That’s the fairest answer I can give you.”