ESPN boxing analyst Teddy Atlas said it "doesn't look like" the net will return him to calling live fights in the near future and the move was not his decision, according to Lance Pugmire of the L.A. TIMES. Atlas has been a "constant presence on ESPN boxing reports" for more than 20 years. However, sources said that the "decision to move him from live broadcasts was based on his comments in two ESPN Top Rank cards this year." Atlas "harshly criticized the judging" in the Jeff Horn-Manny Pacquiao fight in July, while he "argued with newly hired co-analyst Mark Kriegel and questioned his credentials" during a card last month. ESPN and Top Rank "agreed to a lucrative four-year deal" earlier this year. ESPN used Atlas "in the studio" before and after last Saturday's Vasyl Lomachenko-Guillermo Rigondeaux fight, while Timothy Bradley Jr. joined Kriegel and Joe Tessitore ringside at MSG. Atlas said that he has "three years remaining with ESPN" on his current contract (LATIMES.com, 12/13). Tessitore and Kriegel called yesterday's coverage of the Horn-Gary Corcoran fight (THE DAILY).
