Joe Tessitore

Joseph William Tessitore (born January 1, 1971) is an American sportscaster for ABC, ESPN and WWE. He leads ESPN's world championship fight broadcasts as the play-by-play broadcaster for Top Rank Boxing on ESPN and serves as a play-by-play announcer for Holey Moley on ABC alongside comedian Rob Riggle and NBA star Stephen Curry and announces college football on ESPN and ABC. In 2018 and 2019, Tessitore was also the play-by-play broadcaster of Monday Night Football, alongside former Dallas Cowboys tight end Jason Witten and former Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Indianapolis Colts defensive tackle Booger McFarland. Having been part of WWE since July 2024, he is currently the play-by-play commentator for Raw alongside former in-ring competitor Wade Barrett.

Born and raised in Schenectady, New York, Tessitore completed his college preparatory studies at Christian Brothers Academy in Albany, New York He graduated from the Boston College Carroll School of Management in 1993.

Tessitore's broadcasting career began at KXAS-TV, an NBC affiliate in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex. In 1994, he briefly moved to WRGB (CBS) in Albany, New York before joining WFSB (CBS) in Hartford, Connecticut in 1995. Tessitore took over the primary sports anchor role in 1997.

In February 2002, Tessitore began calling boxing on ESPN as part of Tuesday Night Fights and Friday Night Fights. Soon to follow, he was appearing on ESPN College Football and college basketball broadcasts. In addition to his regular duties of football, horse racing and fights Joe has covered a wide array of sporting events for ESPN and is also a featured contributor for ESPN.com. Along with Monday Night Football he was also the lead broadcaster for college basketball's Super Tuesday on ESPN, and the SEC Basketball Tournament, where he was paired with Dick Vitale and Sean Farnham. Tessitore is widely regarded as one of the most versatile broadcasters at the network.

Tessitore spent many years anchoring ABC/ESPN Horse Racing presentations including The Belmont Stakes and The Breeders’ Cup World Championships. In 2008, he was leading the ABC broadcast team when undefeated colt Big Brown failed to win horse racing's Triple Crown. In 2015 he was trackside anchoring Sportscenter's weeklong coverage of American Pharoah's history making win. Tessitore also was ESPN's host/anchor when famed race horse Zenyatta's unbeaten streak was stopped. The champion filly was defeated in the Breeders' Cup Classic.

Tessitore has produced documentaries for ESPN's award-winning 30 for 30 series. In 2011 he was the executive producer of the ESPN Film Roll Tide, War Eagle. In 2012 he was the consulting producer on ESPN's 30 for 30 featuring Bo Jackson.

For five years Tessitore was the host of ESPN's live New Year's Eve specials, including RedBull New Year, No Limits, and the debut of ESPN's Year of the Quarterback.

Previous to joining Monday Night Football, Tessitore was the lead play-by-play broadcaster for ESPN's Saturday Night College Football Primetime Game and the College Football Playoff. He appeared in the booth alongside veteran broadcaster Todd Blackledge as part of ESPN's coverage of college football. Tessitore and his primetime crew were honored for their work, including being chosen by Sports Illustrated as the 2016 Broadcast Team of the Year.