Via Craig Daly: Eddie Hearn has revealed that Anthony Joshua has chosen his new coach and will train in the United States to return to the ring on April 1 in London. AJ will begin training camp next week for his next game against a top 20 opponent yet to be determined.
Hearn did not say who coached former two-time heavyweight champion Joshua for a number of reasons, but he will save the announcement for later.
Boxing fans are more concerned with who Joshua will fight next than with the new coach, as whoever takes over, they could soon be swapped for another coach after AJ is beaten. or get worse again.
Robert Garcia coached Joshua for his final bout against Oleksandr Usyk last August, but he opted to replace him after the defeat.
It’s a musical chair game for Joshua, when he shuffles the coaches, hopefully they can revive him and get him back to the boxer he was before Andy Ruiz Jr got him in 2019. If Joshua believes that a coach will be a Genie can turn him into something he wasn’t designed to be, he needs to wake up and realize he’s asking for the impossible.
Die-hard fans of Joshua, 33 (24-3, 22 KOs) will be eager to know who the lucky coach is, but that may not matter. Joshua’s heart and chin problems cannot be changed.
If he’s going to invite Angel Fernandez over to share coaching duties with his new coach, it could be an unhealthy situation no matter who the new guy is.
I don’t understand why Joshua chose April Fool’s Day as his return date, as it makes him look bad because many fans will laugh at him.
They thought his career was a joke at this point, and the battle on April 1 added fuel to their fire. Joshua would look especially bad if he were to face a bottom-of-the-table player who is completely underwhelming because it’s clear his career is falling apart.
Joshua needs to face a reliable contender in the top 5 and assumes his new coach will teach him enough to win.
Good choice:
- Zhang Zhilei
- Martin Bakole
- Frank Sanchez
- Arslanbek Makhmudov
- Otto Wallin
- Andy Ruiz Jr.
- Joseph Parker
- Luis Ortiz
