Trainer Ben Davison Explains Why He Wants Oleksandr Usyk & Not Tyson Fury For Anthony Joshua
Ben Davison, the trainer of Anthony Joshua, is hopeful the Brit will face Oleksandr Usyk and not Tyson Fury next.
Joshua is coming off a second-round knockout win over Francis Ngannou and is expected to face the winner of Usyk-Fury. Most seem to think Joshua would want to box Fury as he hasn’t yet, while he’s also 0-2 against Usyk.
However, according to Davison, he says Usyk is the fight they want more as they believe they have the tools to beat.
“That’s the fight that we’d love to do,” the trainer said. “We’d love to get a chance to help Joshua put that right. I don’t know [if it’s also the fight Joshua wants most]. I don’t think he’s fussed. I think he’s a boxer; he gets matched and he’s happy to kick some a*** either way. We’re miles away from it at the minute, because Tyson’s got to fight Usyk – potentially a rematch – so, yeah, we’re still steps away from that. We’ll see [how I feel about preparing Joshua for Fury]. When the time comes around, if the time comes around, we’ll see. This deal – obstacle – is in the way for that fight to even be made. To be honest, I still feel like I haven’t managed to recover since that [Joshua-Ngannou] fight. So I haven’t thought about it.”
Ultimately, Ben Davison thinks Anthony Joshua didn’t have the right game plan in the first matchups against Oleksandr Usyk which is why they want to get the fight back.
“There was massive gaps between the first Usyk fight; the second Usyk fight,” Davison continued. “The activity is key, and I think that’s helped him. Get back-to-back training camps; develop his skills. He spent a lot of time with a lot of different trainers; he’s developed other areas of his game, and that’s played a part in him finally getting to where he’s got to. It’s a lot of pressure. A lot of work gets put into the build-up. Flights – we had a nightmare getting back [from Riyadh] with a 10, 11-hour delay, and then straight back to work. I didn’t get a chance to have a rest. It’s a hectic schedule at the minute, so I’m still trying to recover.
“It’s not us, it’s [Joshua who deserves the credit for his improved performances]. All we’ve done is just help him. He’s a two-time unified heavyweight champion of the world – an Olympic gold medallist. All we’ve done is help him select the right tools for the job. That’s him. He’s gone out there and done it,” Davison added. “He’s had confidence in the selection of tools, so to speak; he’s gone out there and done the job. I think the activity as well has played a part.”
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