Anthony Joshua has returned to trainer Ben Davison for his heavyweight superfight with Tyson Fury in December.
Davison has the unique distinction of having trained both Joshua and Fury. The trainer, who has also trained Fabio Wardley and Moses Itauma among others, helped Fury make his comeback from a long layoff from the sport, an unbeaten run that included his first fight with Deontay Wilder in 2018.
Recently, Davison has been working with Joshua, although AJ left and brought in trainers from Oleksandr Usyk’s camp for his last two fights.
Now Joshua has been reunited with Davison, who for the first time in a fight will be in the opposite corner to Fury. This has caused Fury to label him a “traitor”.
Eddie Hearn, Joshua’s promoter, revealed that AJ has maintained his ties to Davison even though he switched training teams and has not specifically turned to target Fury.
“Ben is a great trainer. Even in the last fight and the one before that, he was always working with Ben Davison backstage,” Hearn said. Sky Sports News.
“Obviously, Ben Davison knows Tyson Fury pretty well as well. I don’t think that’s the deciding factor. But AJ just thought he’d be a good addition to the camp.
“So he’ll be the head coach going into this fight. He’s still working with Usyk’s team and those guys as well.”
Since Rob McCracken, Joshua has had a number of different trainers, hiring Robert Garcia, then Derrick James before joining Davison and then Iegor Golub from Usyk’s team.
But promoter Hearn insists that doesn’t mean Joshua’s corner is unsustainable.
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Watch highlights from the Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua press conference.
“I think AJ knows where he’s at, but I don’t think he’s going to start changing things. He just wants to change things and fix things from a strategic perspective,” Hearn said.
“He knows what he has to do. And at the end of the day, it’s a shot to his chin and it knocks him out. That’s the game plan.
“And we have to find a way to do it efficiently and correctly. And he will do that carefully with Ben Davison and the team.”
Nelson ‘surprised’ by Davison’s decision
Former world champion and Sky Sports Boxing expert Johnny Nelson believes Joshua’s decision to return to Davison will raise questions.
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Jamie Moore, Barry Jones and Matthew Macklin debate who will win between Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua when the pair meet in Cardiff on December 11.
“Ben is under a lot of criticism and has recently stood up for his accusation against some other fighters,” Nelson said. Sky Sports News.
“Obviously AJ is comfortable with whatever message Ben Davison brings to him. I think I saw Tyson and Shane (Fury) walk over and call him a traitor, and he had a little smile on his face.
“I am surprised, but this is his choice.
“I don’t agree with fighters waiting and changing coaches all the time because you have to feel that you build a relationship, a trust, a belief in your coach.
“If he says jump, you don’t say how high, you just jump, and so I struggle to understand the cut and the change.
“But that’s AJ’s call, he obviously made it for a reason. It’s going to be interesting.”
