Eddie Hearn says Anthony Joshua will stay with his trainer Ben Davison for his next fight, which could be a rematch with IBF heavyweight champion Daniel Dubois in early 2025.
(Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing)
Promoter Hearn says Joshua (28-4, 25 KOs) is “Happy” to be working with Davison and did well in camp leading up to his fifth-round knockout loss to Dubois (22-2, 21 KOs) on September 21.
Fans see Ben Davison as more of a motivational coach than one who can teach the technical side of the sport. They see him as a guy who can say to Joshua, ‘Atta boy, Joshua, throw the uppercut.’ With Joshua’s career and legacy on the line for his rematch with Dubois, sticking with Ben as his trainer could be a foolish mistake on his part.
If Joshua loses the rematch, he will have someone to blame; it will be an easy target in Ben. It would be a different story if Joshua went with a new trainer because he would be forced to shoulder the blame from fans because the new guy couldn’t do anything with what was a flawed fighter to begin with. Sticking with Ben is ideal as he is an obvious target if Joshua gets blown out of the water by Dubois again.
Joshua’s fans who favor him to keep Davison and his current training team feel that Ben has done a great job rebuilding AJ after his back to back losses to Oleksandr Usyk. They feel that just because Joshua suffered a setback against the big puncher Dubois, it shouldn’t mean that Ben should be given the ax in favor of another trainer.
On the other hand, Joshua’s so-called rebuilding job done by Ben Davison was against 100% tomato cans that would have beaten any heavyweight in the top tier.
A proper rebuild, if there was one, would have involved Joshua beating A-level fighters rather than this gang of four:
– Francis Ngannou
– Otto Wallin
—Robert Helenius
– Jermaine Franklin
“He is satisfied with his training camp. He was in good condition; he saved a lot. In my opinion there will be no changes,” said Eddie Hearn Fight Hub TV on Joshua’s decision to keep Ben Davison as his trainer.
Last updated on 10/05/2024
