Miami, Florida – November 22, 2025 – In a stunning twist that has sent shockwaves through the boxing world, former two-time heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has parted ways with longtime trainer Ben Davison and revealed he's been honing his skills with the very team that orchestrated his most humbling defeats: the camp of reigning undisputed heavyweight king Oleksandr Usyk. The announcement, dropped during Friday's electrifying press conference at Miami's Kaseya Center, underscores Joshua's no-holds-barred approach to his December 19 showdown with YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul – a bout streaming live on Netflix and poised to shatter streaming records for combat sports.
Joshua, 36, the towering 6-foot-6 Olympic gold medalist from London's 2012 Games, has long been a polarizing figure in heavyweight boxing. His career, a rollercoaster of glory and grit, includes 28 wins (25 by knockout) but four stinging losses since 2019, the most recent a fifth-round knockout against fellow Brit Daniel Dubois in September 2024. That defeat, his first since Usyk's unanimous decision triumphs in 2021 and 2022, prompted a 15-month hiatus marked by elbow surgery and soul-searching. "I took 12 months out of the game and realigned my vision board," Joshua said coolly at the presser, his voice steady amid the flashing cameras. "I trimmed down my team too – I was moving at 100mph with the blinkers on. It took time, but now I'm here."
The split from Davison, who cornered Joshua for the Dubois fight and had been with him since 2023, was amicable but decisive. "No, I won't be trained by Ben Davison," Joshua confirmed when pressed by moderator Ariel Helwani. "London's a bit distracting for me. I was invited to train with Team Usyk. I've been in Spain, we've been doing some good training." He paused, a faint smile cracking his stoic facade. "He's [Usyk] one of the best in the world. Not 'I think' – he is. It's not just down to him; it's the team around him. Getting an insight into how someone who's achieved so much has been phenomenal. It's been a great experience and very challenging." Joshua clarified he's been embedded with the Ukrainian's squad for "a couple of months now," though no direct sparring with Usyk occurred – the champ was "in and out of camp, training elsewhere." As head trainer for fight night, Joshua name-dropped "Igor," likely referring to a key member of Usyk's inner circle.
This isn't Joshua's first coaching carousel ride. Post his initial Usyk loss at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September 2021 – a fight where the smaller, slicker Ukrainian outboxed him over 12 rounds – he ditched longtime mentor Robert McCracken for Robert Garcia, then pivoted to Derrick James before landing with Davison. Each shift aimed to recapture the thunderous power that felled legends like Wladimir Klitschko in 2017's upset before 90,000 at Wembley. But losses to Andy Ruiz Jr. (twice) and Usyk exposed vulnerabilities: a rigid stance prone to counters and a tendency to fade late. Teaming with Usyk's crew – the same group that dismantled him in Jeddah's 2022 rematch – smacks of humility and hunger. "They’re killing me, drilling me," Joshua admitted, crediting Davison for endorsing the move: "Ben said, ‘One hundred per cent, that’s a great move.’" Promoter Eddie Hearn sees it as a masterstroke. "AJ knows Usyk's performances inside out. He's checking that out – not joining permanently, but learning."
The December 19 "Judgment Day" card marks Joshua's ring return and Paul's boldest leap yet. The eight-rounder, fought over three-minute rounds in 10-ounce gloves, carries a £140 million purse split evenly, with Joshua capped at 245 pounds to level the scales somewhat. Paul, 28, tips the scales at around 200 pounds from his cruiserweight base, but his heavyweight debut against a 58-year-old Mike Tyson last November drew 100 million Netflix views. This fight could double that. "It's massive, colossal," Joshua boomed. "We're bringing marketability together with ability – those two worlds collide." Paul, unfazed by the physical chasm (five-inch height gap, six-inch reach edge, 50-pound weight bulge for AJ), leaned into the underdog narrative. "It's great he's training with the best – one of the best heavyweights," Paul shot back. "We expect nothing less. I want the best version of Anthony Joshua on December 19. It's going to be the best version of Jake Paul you've seen, and we'll see who's better." Later, escalating the trash talk, Paul vowed a knockout in four or five rounds: "I'm ready to die in the ring if it means beating him." Joshua countered: "I'm going to break his face and break his body up. I'll stomp all over him. No mercy."
Friday's face-off amplified the mismatch optics. Joshua loomed like a colossus, his frame a sculpted 240-plus pounds of menace, while Paul, chiseled but compact at 6-foot-1, stared up with trademark bravado, his diamond-studded "Problem Child" chain glinting. Social media erupted: "It's over for him," one fan tweeted, echoing a chorus fretting for Paul's chin. Another quipped, "Joshua's going to give him serious damage – Usyk's team or not, Paul's sparring with influencers." Betting odds tilt heavily toward AJ at -2000, with Paul a +800 longshot. But Paul's camp counters: his 10-1 record (7 KOs) includes savvy wins over MMA vets, and he's bulked up strategically. "Every doubt disappears" with a Joshua KO, Paul prophesied, eyeing a 2026 Tyson Fury clash.
The undercard packs star power and stakes. Co-main: Unified super featherweight queen Alycia Baumgardner (16-1, 7 KOs) defends her WBA, WBO, and IBF belts against surging Canadian Leila Beaudoin (13-1, 2 KOs) in a historic 12-round, three-minute affair – a nod to gender equity in round lengths. Opener: A cruiserweight grudge at 195 pounds pits UFC icons Anderson Silva (3-2 boxing) against Tyron Woodley (0-3 boxing), subbing for injured Chris Weidman. Both fell to Paul – Silva by decision in 2022, Woodley by KO rematch – making it a "redemption rumble" for two "OGs." Prelims feature Cherneka "Sugar Neekz" Johnson's undisputed bantamweight defense vs. Amanda Galle and WBC strawweight titlist Yokasta Valle vs. Yadira Bustillos.
Critics decry the main event as a "car crash," but stakeholders salivate. Netflix hailed Joshua as "one of the most formidable heavyweights," while Hearn shrugged off purists: "People laughed then [at Paul], but now it's colossal." For Joshua, post-Dubois, it's redemption fuel. "My career is far from over," he vowed. Teaming with Usyk's squad? It's evolution, not desperation. As Miami's humid December night looms, one truth endures: in boxing's brutal theater, rivals become teachers, and underdogs become legends – or lore. Will Paul's "torch pass" or Joshua's hammer fall? Tune in December 19. The ring will render judgment.
