Teddy Atlas Returns Ringside: Hall of Famer to Call Salita's Nov. 7 Albuquerque Card on DAZN

Teddy Atlas is going back to work ringside, and he's picked a spot with some history for him.

Salita Promotions announced Tuesday that the Hall of Fame broadcaster will be the expert analyst on its Big Time Boxing show on Saturday, Nov. 7, at Kiva Auditorium in Albuquerque, live on DAZN at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT). Atlas will work alongside play-by-play man Brian Custer and reporter and podcast host Naji Grampus. It's his first event for Salita Promotions, and it comes after what the release calls "a brief period of time away from calling live fights ringside."

Atlas has called fights for more than 50 years on ESPN, ABC and elsewhere, and he also trained 18 world champions. He said what got him back was the kind of fights Dmitriy Salita wants to make.

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"I figured it was time to come back and work with a guy like Dmitriy Salita who is trying to build the product the right way - build a stable and put on quality, competitive fights," Atlas said. "Give the fans fights that aren't 80-20 or 70-30, but fights where you can't completely pick a winner."

He also liked who he'd be sitting next to. "When they said I would work with Brian Custer, I said yes. I just want to work with professionals," Atlas said.

New Mexico isn't new territory for him. Atlas called plenty of Johnny Tapia and Danny Romero fights back in the day, and he hasn't forgotten the crowds. "The fans there are very passionate," he said. "It's part of their culture in New Mexico, their heritage. They are proud of their champions and they have a reason to be."

And in case anybody wondered whether he'd found a second career, Atlas cleared that up. "I've been in the business over 50 years. I don't know anything else. I painted one house and did a good job, but this is all I know. It's nice to be wanted and even better to be back."

Salita, who grew up watching fights Atlas called while he was training to turn pro, sounded like a fan himself. "There's only one Teddy Atlas - a man who has witnessed and been part of some of boxing's greatest nights, both as a trainer and as a ringside commentator," Salita said.

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THE CARD HE'LL BE CALLING

The main event is a homecoming. Albuquerque's Abraham Perez (15-0, 7 KOs) makes the first defense of his WBA interim flyweight title against Yankiel Rivera (8-1-1, 4 KOs). It's a story Atlas won't need notes for: two years ago, eight days before the biggest fight of his career, Perez nearly drowned and ended up in a coma, and he was given a diagnosis that he might never walk again. He came back to boxing in 2025 and won the interim belt in June on DAZN against Jonathan Gonzalez.

In the 10-round co-main, unbeaten light heavyweight Atif Oberlton (17-0, 14 KOs) faces Deon Nicholson (23-1, 19 KOs), a meeting of two big punchers at 175. We wrote about Oberlton stepping up for this one when it was first announced.

Two unbeaten American heavyweights round out the broadcast, as we reported last week. Pryce Taylor (13-0, 8 KOs) meets former Ukrainian Olympian Tsotne Rogava (13-1, 8 KOs) over 10 rounds for the NABF heavyweight title, and Sardius Simmons (10-0, 5 KOs) takes on Cesar Navarro (15-4, 13 KOs) in an eight-rounder.

The show is promoted by Salita Promotions and Legacy Boxing Promotions in association with Wynn Records. Tickets are on Ticketmaster.

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Source: Salita Promotions press release, Oct. 20, 2026 (Atlas, Salita quotes, broadcast team, card and records).