Anthony Joshua’s ex-trainer Robert Garcia says AJ needs another three tune-up fights along the same lines as Jermaine Franklin before he’s ready to start fighting the elite-level heavyweights again.
Robert wants Joshua (25-3, 22 KOs) to get a good three-fight winning streak to rebuild his self-confidence before he fights the quality fighters in the division.
From what he heard from fans about Joshua’s recent subpar performance against Franklin, he’s not ready to tackle the better fighters at heavyweight yet.
Robert doesn’t say who specifically he would like for Joshua to fight in the next three tune-ups, but Dillian Whyte would likely be on the list. That’s a guy that is with the same promoter as Joshua, and the two have a history.
Other good tune-up options for Joshua:
- Frank Sanchez
- Otto Wallin
- Joseph Parker
- Agit Kabayel
- Luis Ortiz
- Fabio Wardley
- Lenier Pero
“It’s hard when a fighter gets two losses and comes back. There’s always going to be some doubts in himself, and the good thing is he won, and they picked the right opponent to get him back to a win, especially with a new trainer,” said Robert Garcia to Fighthype, reflecting on Anthony Joshua’s victory over Jermaine Franklin.
“It’s good because they need to do another three of those types of fights to get him used to his new trainer and get him to a winning streak,” Robert continued about Joshua.
“I told him before he left, with me or without me, to bring him to the United States. He’s [Joshua] not the best at that gym [Derrick James]. If he had come to my gym, we have Bam [Rodriguez]. Bam is 200 lbs lighter than you, but he’s going to be better than you. That’s what Anthony needed, and I told him that he needed.
“He didn’t choose my gym, and that’s fine. He still did it with Derrick James. They did the right thing,” said Robert about Joshua making the right decision to train in the U.S. with James.
“Because I said that he lost his head after the fight and grabbed the mic and the belts,” said Robert when told that some boxing fans have said that he made critical remarks about Joshua after his loss to Oleksandr Usyk last August in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.
“I wasn’t the only one that said it. The whole world seen that. So me seeing that if I was to stay quiet, it’s just to make him happy. I’m not a ‘yes man.’ I know it wasn’t right. I felt bad for Usyk,” said Robert in discussing how Joshua grabbed Usyk’s belts and threw them out of the ring after the fight.
“Usyk is a world champion and just defended his championship, and Anthony grabbed his belts and threw them out. That’s very disrespectful. So what am I supposed to say? That I’m proud that he did the right thing. So because I said it, he feels bad?” said Garcia.
https://youtu.be/eaMueiQ42ZQ?t=61