Anthony Joshua has been told his "woeful" coaches let him down again after coming up short in his efforts to win back his belts against Oleksandr Usyk.
Joshua, 32, was outpointed by Usyk for the second time in 11 months as he lost a split decision to the heavyweight champion in Saudi Arabia on Saturday night. One judge was slammed for scoring the fight in Joshua's favour despite Usyk being the clear winner, with the other two having it 115-113 and 116-112 for the Ukrainian.
The Brit ditched his longtime coach Robert McCracken for the rematch after the coach's poor corner advice for Joshua's first meeting against Usyk last September. Joshua's new trainer Robert Garcia led his fighter to a much-improved performance, but it wasn't enough as Usyk outclassed him for a second time. One of Joshua's former Olympic coaches, Paul Walmsley, thinks 'AJ' was let down for a second time by his corner staff against Usyk.
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"Big Josh let down by woeful cornermen in both fights," Walmsley wrote on Twitter. A fan then asked Walmsley what advice Garcia should have given Joshua, to which he replied: "Front foot pressure, staying in front of him as he moves. Let his shots go as Usyk came in (Josh has the longer reach) therefore more chance of landing. Also easier to control ring space and put pressure on Usyk. Josh kept pushing away as Usyk came in giving him more space to move."
Joshua toured the US following his first loss to Usyk in search of a new trainer, working with the likes of Eddie Reynoso and Virgil Hunter before deciding to partner with Garcia. Also in his corner on Saturday night was Angel Fernandez, who has been working with Joshua since his knockout defeat by Andy Ruiz Jr in 2019.
A big part of Joshua's decision to partner with Garcia was because he wanted a good relationship between his new trainer and Fernandez. Joshua's best moments in the fight came in the ninth round when he had Usyk hurt, but the Ukrainian made an excellent recovery and came firing out of the blocks in the next round before finishing the fight on top.
Joshua has insisted that he will not retire following his second defeat on the bounce, stating: "I spoke to Eddie [Hearn] and asked him if it’s possible to get out in November because momentum is important in boxing. Eddie said December,” he said. “If it’s about who I fight, it’s come one, come all. Whoever wants it can get it, I don’t mind."
