Via Adam Baskin: According to Gareth A. Davies, Anthony Joshua and his new coach Robert Garcia did not see each other “eye-to-eye” during the rematch against Oleksandr Usyk.
Garcia was brought in to replace Joshua’s longtime coach Rob McCracken with the idea of ramping up AJ, and making him more aggressive for the rematch with Usyk (19-0, 13 KOs).
Gareth didn’t say what the problem was between Joshua and Robert, but it’s possible that the aggressive approach the American coach is trying to teach Joshua in a training camp may be a bit too much.
What Robert is trying to do is a practice session to give Joshua a lot of new things in a short eight-week period, hoping that he will remember enough of them to successfully use them on Saturday in front of the house. Unified Heavy Enemy Usyk.
“I heard they haven’t seen each other in a while,” Gareth A Davies told The back of the glove about Anthony Joshua and his new coach Robert Garcia.
“It is a new relationship. In the second relationship, you are working through everything. That’s all good news for me. They worked on his confidence. Change in momentum from the first fight because it was the wrong game plan to try and box Usyk.
“Be aggressive, dirty, push him around, close the space, let go, but obviously with educational pressure. Usyk knew what Joshua would do. He will let go more and be more physical with him.
“He wouldn’t stand by and try to stab him and shut the space down that way. Usyk was up against a formidable Adonis, who had very heavy arms, a larger, heavier and stronger man.
“So he is preparing for that, and I think he also wants to finish the fight and fight the fire. He knows he has the hard skills to do that. He needs to be strong in it.
“Maybe he doesn’t want to go all 12 rounds this time. I didn’t buy him 20 kg heavier, but he certainly looks thicker around the torso and stronger,” Davies said of Usyk.
