Anthony Joshua has appointed Derrick James as his new trainer ahead of his heavyweight comeback bout against Jermaine Franklin on April 1.
A New Dawn 🌅 pic.twitter.com/WY9LgiYJ6D
— Anthony Joshua (@anthonyjoshua) February 6, 2023
The British heavyweight parted ways with former coach Robert McCracken, who was with him for ten years, after his first loss to reigning world heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk in September 2021.
He teamed up with former American boxer Robert Garcia to increase his chances of winning the rematch in August 2022, but the 33-year-old was unable to regain his titles as he lost again on a narrow split-decision to the Ukrainian nicknamed “The Cat.”
Joshua has since chosen to travel to the US and will work with James, who manages a talented pool of boxers, including current unified welterweight champion Errol Spence Jr. and undisputed super welterweight champion Jermell Charlo.
Anthony Joshua in the gym training with Derrick James… pic.twitter.com/ky5haZqGiB
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBensonn) December 13, 2022
The American had previously won Ring Magazine Trainer of the Year in 2017 and was also recognized for his accomplishments by the World Boxing Council (WBC) in 2020.
The 51-year-old is renowned for coaching his fighters to be aggressive and always pursue a stoppage, an aspect of Joshua’s game that has been non-existent in his recent outings; he has seen the final bell in four of his last five fights and will be eager to rekindle his hard-hitting ruthlessness that brought him to the limelight.
James stated that he was impressed by the Brit’s abilities and would like to assist Joshua in regaining his winning mentality.
He told Fight Hype: “Yes, he does [fit in.] He doesn’t want to stop. I really was impressed. It was great to see. Most big guys are not so… they’re kind of lazy or whatever.”
“But I saw the way we’d work. He’s a student. Any fighter that has a new trainer, it’s all about maneuvering and getting meshed to where you really know what he’s doing before you go into some big fights.”
“Bring those winning ways back. That’s the most important part about it,” he concluded.
Joshua parted ways with long-term trainer McCracken after coming in for criticism over his conservative strategy in his first loss to Usyk.
After relocating to the Loughborough University campus, he was unable to change the sequel, despite showing some signs of improvement.
It will be a big year for Joshua as he chases a return to world title contention, beginning with his meeting with Franklin.
