Anthony Joshua’s ex-trainer lifts lid on Oleksandr Usyk training camp problems and says he wanted to fly home after a week

Anthony Joshua’s former trainer revealed he was so frustrated with the training camp for the Oleksandr Usyk rematch that he asked to leave.

AJ lost back-to-back fights with the heavyweight champion, the first at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and the second out in Saudi Arabia.

GETTY

Robert Garcia replaced Joshua’s long-time trainer, Rob McCracken, after the first defeat.

Garcia, though, said issues emerged during the fight camp leading up to that rematch that made him want to leave.

He told iD Boxing: “I know that the work with me and Angel Fernandez wasn’t bad, but it honestly could have been better.

“Nobody mentions everything that went on in training camp, and I’m not going to mention it either. But we all know the way the training camp went.

“It was frustrating for me, there was so many new people in camp. The first week that I was there, I told his management team to fly me home.

“Because there were people there who, I believe, were not going to help out.”

Anthony Joshua

Garcia will not be in AJ’s corner for his upcoming fight with Jermaine Franklin on April 1, with Derrick James his new head coach for a camp based at James’ gym in Texas.

His former coach backed him to get back on track in that clash and move on to bigger names again.

Garcia said: “Now I think he’s in a great place, in a great training camp and I’m sure he’ll be in great shape.

“He’s going to get a good, solid win so his next fight can be against a big name.”

There has been talk of a future fight with Deontay Wilder and a Battle of Britain clash with Tyson Fury.