Anthony Joshua is set to return to the training corner of Ben Davison for his highly anticipated heavyweight unification bout against Tyson Fury in Cardiff this December. The reunion carries significant emotional weight, as Davison previously guided Fury through a successful comeback that included his first meeting with Deontay Wilder in 2018, before later working with Joshua.
The decision has drawn sharp criticism from Fury’s camp, with the champion labeling Davison a “traitor” for returning to the side of his former fighter. For the first time, Davison will be positioned in the opposite corner from Fury during a championship contest.
However, Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn clarified that the move was not solely motivated by a desire to exploit inside knowledge of Fury. Hearn revealed that Joshua has maintained contact with Davison behind the scenes even during his recent stints with trainers from Oleksandr Usyk’s camp.
“Ben’s a great trainer,” Hearn told Sky Sports News. “Even in the last fight and the one before, he was always working with Ben Davison behind the scenes. Obviously, Ben Davison knows Tyson Fury pretty well as well. I don’t think that’s the defining reason. But AJ just felt it would be a good addition to the camp.”
Joshua’s managerial journey since Rob McCracken has seen him cycle through several head trainers, including Robert Garcia and Derrick James, before teaming up with Davison and Iegor Golub from Usyk’s stable. Despite the shuffling, Hearn insisted the current setup is stable and focused.
“I think AJ knows where he is, but I don’t think he’s going to start changing things around,” Hearn stated. “He just wants to tweak things and get things right from a strategy perspective… He knows what he needs to do. And ultimately, that’s land one straight on his chin and knock him spark out. That’s the game plan.”
Former world champion and Sky Sports analyst Johnny Nelson expressed surprise at the appointment, noting Davison has faced recent criticism regarding other fighters he has coached. Nelson emphasized the importance of long-term stability in a trainer-fighter relationship.
“I don’t agree with fighters chopping and changing trainers all the time, because you need to feel that you create a relationship, a trust, a belief in your coach,” Nelson said. “If he says jump, you don’t say how high, you just jump, and so I struggle to understand the chopping and changing. But this is AJ’s call, he’s obviously done it for a reason. It’ll be interesting.”
Love the nostalgia factor seeing them back together. Cardiff is going to be electric for this one! Can’t wait for December.
I’m just skeptical. Chopping and changing trainers every few months never ends well. Hope Joshua finds stability this time.
Hearn said knocking Fury out is the plan, but this fight is all about strategy and boxing IQ now. Expect a tactical masterpiece.
Wait, Davison trained Fury before Joshua? That’s wild. Never knew he worked with both of them. History repeats itself!
Fury calling it treason is just classic mind games. They’ll face each other in the ring anyway, no drama needed.