Why is Ben Davison training Anthony Joshua for Francis Ngannou fight?

ANTHONY JOSHUA will take on UFC legend Francis Ngannou in Saudi Arabia on Friday night.

AJ goes in to the fight on the back off a huge win over Otto Wallin in December.

Anthony Joshua beat Otto Wallin last time outGETTY

ANTHONY JOSHUA VS FRANCIS NGANNOU: ALL THE DETAILS YOU NEED AHEAD OF HUGE CROSSOVER BOUT

The British heavyweight is aiming to win his fourth fight on the spin as he continues to rebuild his career following back-to-back defeats to Oleksandr Usyk.

Meanwhile, Francis Ngannou has only just begun his journey in boxing after the former UFC champion made his debut in the sport against Tyson Fury last year.

The Cameroonian powerhouse dropped the undefeated Gypsy King in the third round before going on to lose via split decision in controversial fashion.

Ngannou will be out to cause a huge upset on Friday night as he seeks his first professional win in boxing.

Why is Ben Davison training Anthony Joshua for Francis Ngannou fight?

Tyson Fury’s former trainer Ben Davison trained Anthony Joshua for his last fight against Otto Wallin in December 2023.

Before AJ’s clash with the Swede, he was trained under American Derrick James in Texas for wins against Jermain Franklin and Robert Helenius.

For Joshua’s upcoming bout with Francis Ngannou, the heavyweight confirmed he will be sticking with Davison in his corner.

AJ said at the press conference for the fight in January: “I believed that [training with] Derrick was like a process. He’s got an actual style of training, and I had to adapt to his style, it was a process.

“And I’d just changed trainers; I’d been to Rob [McCracken], I’d been with Angel [Fernandez], [Robert] Garcia, now Derrick. I said to the boys: ‘I don’t wanna move again, I wanna make my bed and lie in it.’

“But the thing is, when I was back in the UK, I was in Finchley hitting the heavy bag on my own. They were like: ‘Why don’t you go and speak to Ben?’ He’s good, he’s given us some tips and me some tips, leading up to the fight that was supposed to be with Dillian [Whyte]. ‘Why don’t you just go and see him?’ I was like: ‘Na, na, na, na, I don’t wanna change, I’m pretty set on going to America.’ But I went and saw Ben, had a really good session.”

“The reason I was able to gel with Ben is because he doesn’t try to change your style.

“He kind of looks at your attributes and adds to what you’re good at. I went to a stage where I was trying to change my style: a bit of back-foot boxing, box behind the jab, stick and move, not be explosive, control the pace, and stuff like that.

“But Ben was like: ‘That’s not your body type! You’re a f***ing big unit, you’re explosive, go and knock f***ing people out. Basically, work to your body type. So, we got along in that sense. He gets it.”

When is Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou?

• Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou will take place on Friday, March 8.
• The big crossover clash will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
• The ring-walks are expected to get going from around 11pm GMT.

What TV channel is Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou on and can it be live streamed?

• Joshua vs Ngannou will be shown live on DAZN PPV and Sky Sports Box Office.
• You can live stream all the action from the DAZN and Sky Sports Box Office websites as well as their apps, both of which are available for download onto your mobile or tablet device.
• The DAZN UK PPV price will be £19.99, which includes one month’s DAZN subscription.
• For existing DAZN subscribers, the PPV price will be £18.99.
• The Sky Sports Box Office price for the fight has been set at £19.95 for Sky customers in the UK.