Report: Teddy Atlas will no longer train Alexander Povetkin

How is what i wrote a contradiction?
By nature he is a fundamentally sound pressure fighter, Atlas tried to change him into a bobbing and weaving Tyson clone.

What he needed was someone to improve on his strength while taking less shots on the way in.
And considering his height and reach he would need to slip punches more.

Atlas did make him move his head more but he diminished so many of Povetkins strengths to achieve that its just counter productive.

The current Povetkin is probably the most inefficient version of him that ive seen since his debut.

 

I can see what both you and Pete are saying. The thing is that in addition to head movement he came forward and moved back in straight lines which also was a major factor for getting hit so much. Altas in addition to the headmovement also tried to get him to use lateral movement and work more angles rather than just constantly charging forward so his offense is set up with a little more patience in comparision to his old self.

Problem with both things from what i see is that trying to impliment this rather significant change after 15 years of boxing at age 30 is hard to do. It isn't engrained in him where he can do it automatically without having to think about it and alot of the time it looks like you can actually see him trying to think the **** through before he does it. He'll give a split second pause and all of the componants lack a overall fluidity.

Who he trains with and where he decides to go from here regarding his style could be interesting. I suspect he'll continue with what he has been doing trying to perfect it. He's not far off imo he just needs to keep doing it so its more muscle memory and the transitions come quicker without having to think so hard.

 

But you would waste some time. Yeah, article says Povetkin wanted to which is what I thought. Atlas infected the guys mind, but he didn't want Povetkin to fight in the Olympics. Nice try, though.

 

Hi.

 

Yeah, thanks Vysotsky. Truthfully, I'm not a Povetkin expert so I can't really recall or compare too much from the differences Atlas made before and after training him. I've only seen a few fights of his, all of which Atlas were there for. I should've asked to clarify, I guess I'm getting the sense that Povetkin was a more wreck-less pressure fighter, and now he's more of a tentative boxer-swarmer. It seems Atlas made him more sound of a fighter, but did more damage mentally which is a habit of his with his full control, no nonsense, go at my slow pace route he takes with virtually every fighter he trains.

This doesn't come across as at least sounding contradictory? Again, assume a poster doesn't enough about Povetkin. How was he by nature a sound pressure fighter if he needed to move his head more, which Atlas helped him do. I'm not trying to make a fuss, just clarifying my position as to why I thought that sounded contradictory. I think I get the spirit of what you're saying. He's tamed Povetkin's work-rate and he's not the same aggressive-minded fighter anymore. In Atlas' defense, how can you consciously implement defensive-mindedness without taming a fighter's aggression a little bit?

 

I never said Atlas did. Try reading what I said again.

 

Point is the pressure is gone, hes more of a boxer puncher now.
He takes less shots but he just looks ackward doing it.
+ his offense is becoming less profound.

Atlas tends to teach the Tyson mold to all his fighters, problem is Povetkin does not have the speed, the power or the explosiveness to pull it off.

What i would have liked to see is Povetkin hookingup with a trainer that puts a emphasis on what he does well, moving in behind a educated jab and ripping hooks to the head and body with uppercuts in combination.

For that i think the Mexican mold would be vastly superior like Nacho or Garcia.
A trainer that makes his pressure more efficient while being more adapt at slipping punches which would be way less difficult for Povetkin to adapt too then a complete overhaul on a style his physical attributes are not suited too.

Unlike popular belief Tyson was not a inside fighter, he was a midrange fighter... on the inside even in his prime after a few rounds he would be meakly tiedup and not try to fight out.
Now Atlas was preparing Povetkin for a Klitschko supposedly, now do you think a shorter fighter with short reach should stand on midrange bobbing and weaving slowly, or should he cut off the ring, slip the jab and rip the body?

Don't get me wrong i don't think Povetkin is capeble of beating a Klitschko regardless but to me it just seemed like Atlas was sabotaging him completely.

Anyway thats enough of a wall of text, i hope i made my viewpoint a little clearer and not as contradictive.

 

I don't know what you guys are talking about. Atlas took Povetkin from a prospect to the WBA championship!

They ducked and dodged all the way to the bank.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFtP7uqGRj8[/ame]

 

Atlas training style is fine for Potvetkin, and has gotten Sasha past the limited boxerpuncher he once was.....of course, that meant delaying his title shot, and essentially backpedaling, but he's now beaten two consecutive top 20 guys and is fighting a 3rd within weeks.

However, for Sasha's team to refuse to come to America is ludicrous. There are many pros to coming here to train, particularly in the poconos. I really think that if Sahsa trained regularly in the NE US, he might pick up the style abit and become a bick slicker fighter, and potentially one to be reckoned with at the top of the division. But their unsympathetic approach to Atlas' dilemna has me thinking they are looking for an excuse to cut him and return him to the plodder he once was.:-(

Atlas probably has 5-10 more yrs he can keep that job at ESPN, while Sasha has probably 2-4 yrs left at or near the top. Is it worth their small reimbursement for him to jeopardize his bread and butter.

 

I really do not see how Atlas did anything positive for Povetkin tbh, the few improvements he made came with way too many negatives.
+ he stalled his career for years now.

 

Teddy should train other trainers and teach them the secrets that Cus taught him, before those skills die with him, Mike and Kevin Rooney. We've lost too much old school knowledge already.

 

It was the right decision to keep Povetkin away from Klitschko. You cant blow everything on one fight. Atlas got Povetkin to win his biggest career fight! How has Atlas been detrimental to him? We need old school trainers.

 

Daruf:

I agree with you completely. You put into words exactly what I have always thought about Atlas's influence on Povetkin as a fighter.

Povetkin just doesn't have the instincts to excel at what Atlas is teaching him. Teddy's influence, probably, is counterproductive. Guys like Povetkin are best off when they are super-aggressive: their offensive helps to compensate for their innate weaknesses defensively.

Povetkin needs someone who amplifies his offensive skills...that's his strong suit, and he needs to build on it. He can't do anything else.

 

Appreciate the friendly words, and yeah to me Povetkin seems to be stuck inbetween styles and less efficient at both.
Such a shame too i was so excited seeing him comeup, 1 of the fastest rising stars at the time.

I remember he already had fame here on ESB before he turned pro due to his unreal amateur record, and then it actually translated into a meteoric rise as a pro.
Although some people seemed to be a little dissapointed with his lack of 1 punch KO power i still found it exciting to see him break people down.

Atlas just annoys me to no end, the Tyson mold is incredibly hard to emulate.

 

If Povetkin is really splitting up with Atlas,he'll be done in 6 months.