Former unified heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has been spotted in the UK, where he’s allegedly been training at British trainer Ben Davison’s gym. This revelation came to light during a recent interview with Ben Davison. Although no fight has been set for Anthony Joshua in the upcoming months, the British heavyweight appears to be keen on staying busy during head trainer Derrick James’ reported vacation.
While Anthony Joshua’s primary training location seemed to be Derrick James’ gym in Dallas, Texas, James’ apparent holiday has brought Joshua back to his hometown of London, where he has lived for the majority of his life.
The British heavyweight has apparently visited Ben Davison’s gym due to Derrick James’ absence, as confirmed by Ben Davison himself during an interview with Boxing King Media at the press conference surrounding the October 7th fight between featherweights Leigh Wood and Josh Warrington.
“He doesn’t live far from the gym, and if I may say so myself, the gym is quite a good facility, so yeah, he’s been popping down,” Ben Davison said in response to a question that mentioned Joshua frequenting Davison’s gym following Derrick James’ apparent break from training.
Given the reputed high-quality state of Davison’s gym and Joshua’s alleged proximity to it, the decision for the British heavyweight to train there is highly understandable given the circumstances. However, Ben Davison’s prior role as a trainer for Tyson Fury has drawn greater scrutiny to Joshua’s visits to Davison’s gym.
When asked about the extent of Davison’s involvement in training Anthony Joshua, the British boxing trainer appeared reluctant to share any information on this matter.
“We’re here for a big showdown between Josh and Leigh, and really, I just want to stay focused on that,” Davison responded to the interviewer.
“But, as I always say, people tend to come up with conspiracy theories, overthinking things. He’s been coming down to the gym, he doesn’t live far from the gym, and that’s about it.“
According to Davison’s statements, there doesn’t seem to be an official trainer-fighter relationship between him and Anthony Joshua. More importantly, Joshua’s visits to Davison’s gym appear to be for fitness and conditioning purposes.
Additionally, as Ben Davison has been training his fighter Leigh Wood for his upcoming fight with Josh Warrington, it is unlikely that he has been involved in Anthony Joshua’s training, nor has he been teaching Joshua anything related to potentially facing Tyson Fury.
