On the 23rd of December, former Unified Heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua, 26-3, will face Swedish Heavyweight Otto Wallin, 26-1, in the ring. Ahead of the fight, Joshua switched from his former trainer Derrick James to Ben Davidson.
Since then, there have been numerous questions about the move. Finally, in his recent interview, Anthony Joshua revealed the real reason he started training with Ben Davidson ahead of the Wallin fight.
While many believe Joshua hired Ben Davidson because he previously helped Tyson Fury win against Otto Wallin, ‘AJ’ revealed that he was already training with Davidson months before the Wallin fight came. As per Joshua’s statement, while in the UK, the British Heavyweight needed a trainer to improve his skills. That is why he decided to hire Davidson only.
Likewise, speaking to Laura Woods from TNT Sports Boxing, Joshua said, “I’m based in America [the] majority of the time for training camp. And then when I’m back here [UK], rather than hitting a heavy bag by myself and making a hell of a mistake, I think it’s good to work with a coach to still sharpen my thoughts.”
“You brought it to my attention that he worked with Fury when he fought Otto. Crazy how it works. This fight came about two/three days ago. And we were working two/three months ago, So, we were working together anyway,” Joshua added.
However, ‘AJ’ does believe that Davidson will add something of significant value to his preparation since he already once prepared Tyson Fury against Otto Wallin.
‘AJ’ is not overlooking the fact that Davidson helped Fury win over Wallin via UD. Likewise, the 34-year-old said, “He’s been in there. He’s been in the corner.” In addition, Anthony Joshua acknowledged the kind of boxer Otto is. “Wallin is a tough guy. He’s never been stopped, never been hurt, durable. So, he’s going to be game,” he added.
