Cus D’Amato

Cus D'Amato

Constantine D’Amato was an American boxing manager and trainer. He handled the careers of Mike Tyson, Floyd Patterson, and José Torres. Several successful boxing trainers, including Teddy Atlas and Kevin Rooney, were tutored by D’ amato. He adopted Tyson after the future heavyweight champion’s mother died.

About Cus D’Amato in brief

Summary Cus D'AmatoConstantine D’Amato was an American boxing manager and trainer. He handled the careers of Mike Tyson, Floyd Patterson, and José Torres. Several successful boxing trainers, including Teddy Atlas and Kevin Rooney, were tutored by D’ amato. He was a proponent of the peek-a-boo style of boxing, in which the fighter holds his gloves close to his cheeks and pulls his arms tight against his torso. D’amato also confronted boxing politics and decided, along with his friend Howard Cosell, to thwart the International Boxing Club of New York. The IBC was eventually found to be in violation of anti-trust laws and was dissolved. He adopted Tyson after the future heavyweight champion’s mother died over the next few years, encouraging the use of peek-A-boa style boxing for more protection in the face of the opponent.

He had a brief career as an amateur boxer, fighting as a featherweight and lightweight, but was unable to get a professional license because of an eye injury he had suffered in a street fight. He eventually moved to Catskill, New York, where he opened a gym, the Catskill Boxing Club. He met and befriended Bobby Stewart, a former Golden Gloves boxing counselor, while working as a counselor at the Tryon School for Boys. For Tyson’s first boxing glory, Stewart asked D’ Amato to be his counselor.