Anthony Joshua’s Next Opponent Depends On His New Training Team
He is coming off of back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk.
Anthony Joshua is once again on a hunt for a new corner team as the Brit’s return to the ring relies heavily on this aspect of his game.
The two-time world champ, Joshua took the bitter decision of parting ways with his long-term trainer Robert McCracken after losing his title to Oleksandr Usyk in 2021.
A year later, Joshua faced the same opponent under the guidance of veteran coach Robert Garcia but still wasn’t able to change his fate as he succumbed to another twelve-round decision loss in August.
It was the first time Garcia took the responsibility of training a heavyweight but it seems like this partnership with Joshua will not last long.
Eddie Hearn, who has been promoting Joshua for the last decade or so, is eager to match his compatriot against the former WBC champ, Deontay Wilder next year, but that option is far from reality as of now.
“The communication lines are good between me and [Wilder’s co-manager] Shelly [Finkel]. We’ve had a lot of talks, a lot of chats,” Hearn told IFL TV.
Hearn believes that Joshua’s next opponent’s name will not be disclosed until AJ doesn’t get a team to train with.
“Until the training team is confirmed for AJ, we won’t make any opponent selections because we want the input from the trainer. So again, we’ve got three or four guys that we’re talking to and ready to try and make a move for. We have to make sure the training team is comfortable with that. That’ll be the plan over the next couple of weeks.”