Via Barry Holbrook: Ricky Hatton believes Anthony Joshua should not work with his current coaching staff again after they were unable to participate when he had a bout of upset following his loss to Oleksandr Usyk last August.
Hatton felt that Joshua’s trainers could have prevented what happened when he threw Usyk’s belt off the ring and then grabbed the microphone and said a sentence in front of the fans.
Joshua (24-3, 22 KOs) seems to have completely lost his senses after the results of the match were announced, and he needs a replacement.
Hatton said that if he was working in Joshua’s corner, this wouldn’t have happened because he would have put his arm around him and had meaningful talk with him.
The big question is, why didn’t Joshua’s corner step in to stop him from acting inside the ring? Are they worried about what Joshua might do if they try to reassure him? Do they think he will fire them?
So far, Joshua has not eliminated coaches Robert Garcia and Angel Fernandez. It is doubtful that he will fire either of them.
Ricky Hatton said: “Obviously he didn’t make the final decision kindly. Secondsout about Anthony Joshua melting after losing to Oleksandr Usyk last August.
“He went up to the opposite corner, holding their hands for a bit. That’s too heavy for my liking. Someone in that corner should have turned around and said, ‘Oh, AJ is losing it.’ Emotions are all in a fight of that caliber.
“You just got hit, I get it, and someone should have put their arm around him and said, ‘Hey AJ, come on, man. Get out of the ring because you’re not so good. ‘
“No, they allowed that to happen. They allowed him to pull his belt out of the ring. They let him take the microphone. What did his corner do when they saw him with the microphone? He will never be in anyone’s corner again. Shocking behavior, shocking working angle.
“Not everyone succeeds at AJ. AJ could have been saved from all of that by his team. It’s all about having a good team around me. That’s why I’ve had the same team all my career. No one knows you better than the people who have been with you your whole life.
“Obviously they are from America. I don’t know why they came. I think they can do a lot better for AJ in the corner.
“I think that could have been stopped. If I had been in the corner, that would never have happened because you could see him losing it. He needed an arm to hold him. ‘Come on, man, let’s go back to the corner.’
“They just stood there and watched him. I was in Tenerife watching it. I felt like tearing the TV off the wall.
Hatton said of Joshua: “Well, he’s lost his last two skirmishes, which is no shame in losing to Usyk twice. So in many ways he has nothing to lose now if you look at it from there.
“He can go into any fight and throw everything, and that is, to be honest with you. Look, he’s got a big box office hit. He has shown that he has a lot to give. He was better in the first performance [against Usyk].
Hatton said of Joshua: “There are still a lot of good heavyweight fights for him to be in. Hopefully he will find a match.
“AJ, there’s been a lot of talk about December 17. Also look at the beginning of next year. So we just have to see how it plays out, but we’re working through some fighting options for him,” Matchroom Boxing CEO Frank Smith told. UK boxing about Anthony Joshua’s next fight.
“The plan is to get him back in action, win and then some big opportunities, whether it’s the fight between Deontay Wilder and Dillian Whyte. It was another great war. So we’re looking at those big opportunities next year for Anthony,” Smith said.
