Ben Davison would prefer Anthony Joshua enter a third fight with Oleksandr Usyk over a first with Tyson Fury.
Under Davison’s tutelage, following impressive stoppage victories over Otto Wallin and Francis Ngannou – opponents Fury struggled with – Joshua has returned to contention to fight for a world heavyweight title having agreed to box the winner of this year’s two undisputed title fights between Usyk and Fury.
Davison was similarly influential in Fury’s return from retirement when he guided him into the risky fight with Deontay Wilder that revived his career, and having since split from the WBC heavyweight champion and more recently been recruited by Joshua, he is potentially on course to confront an opponent he considers a friend.
Fury, at 35 one year older than Joshua, continues to speak positively about Davison’s qualities. It is also tempting to believe that Joshua partly wanted to be trained by him because he already had a future date with Fury in mind.
Davison, however, having enhanced his reputation with Fury and Joshua more than any other fighter, believes that after having helped Joshua rediscover his confidence – he didn’t go as far as to say he wanted Usyk to beat Fury – it is a fight with Usyk, twice victorious over Joshua, he would relish most.
“That’s the fight that we’d love to do,” the trainer said. “We’d love to get a chance to help Joshua put that right.
“I don’t know [if it’s also the fight Joshua wants most]. I don’t think he’s fussed. I think he’s a boxer; he gets matched and he’s happy to kick some a*** either way.
“We’re miles away from it at the minute, because Tyson’s got to fight Usyk – potentially a rematch – so, yeah, we’re still steps away from that. We’ll see [how I feel about preparing Joshua for Fury]. When the time comes around, if the time comes around, we’ll see.
“This deal – obstacle – is in the way for that fight to even be made. To be honest, I still feel like I haven’t managed to recover since that [Joshua-Ngannou] fight. So I haven’t thought about it.”
Joshua had been inactive for nine months the first time he fought Usyk – who will be 37 when in May in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia he fights Fury – and 11 months ahead of their rematch in August 2022.
“There was massive gaps between the first Usyk fight; the second Usyk fight,” Davison continued. “The activity is key, and I think that’s helped him. Get back-to-back training camps; develop his skills. He spent a lot of time with a lot of different trainers; he’s developed other areas of his game, and that’s played a part in him finally getting to where he’s got to.
“It’s a lot of pressure. A lot of work gets put into the build-up. Flights – we had a nightmare getting back [from Riyadh] with a 10, 11-hour delay, and then straight back to work. I didn’t get a chance to have a rest. It’s a hectic schedule at the minute, so I’m still trying to recover.
“It’s not us, it’s [Joshua who deserves the credit for his improved performances]. All we’ve done is just help him. He’s a two-time unified heavyweight champion of the world – an Olympic gold medallist. All we’ve done is help him select the right tools for the job. That’s him. He’s gone out there and done it.
“He’s had confidence in the selection of tools, so to speak; he’s gone out there and done the job. I think the activity as well has played a part.”