Anthony Joshua reveals contact with Peter Fury as Davison training role confirmed

Anthony Joshua has revealed that he is in contact with Peter Fury, the uncle and former trainer of Tyson Fury, and said he intends to seek his advice before facing his heavyweight rival. The Guardian reported the disclosure ahead of the fighters' first press conference in London on Wednesday, adding a new detail to Joshua's preparations for the December bout in Cardiff.

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Joshua said Peter was willing to help and that their most recent conversation had taken place about a month earlier. He explained that the connection developed through British heavyweight Matty Harris, whom Peter trains and who visits for sparring. Joshua described the potential discussions as a way to improve his own training and approach, rather than an attempt to obtain information about Tyson from a family member.

Peter trained Tyson when he defeated Wladimir Klitschko in 2015 to win his first world heavyweight title. The Guardian reported that the pair subsequently fell out and have not spoken for many years. Joshua's comments established that they have been in contact, but did not amount to an announcement that Peter would become his trainer. Joshua also stressed that he ultimately needed to trust his own judgement about how to fight.

Ben Davison will train Joshua for the contest, according to the Guardian. Davison previously worked with Tyson Fury and helped him return to boxing in 2018. Joshua said his decision to work with Davison was based on the team's ability to identify details he could use in a fight, rather than simply on the trainer's past experience with his opponent.

Joshua also addressed his defeat by Daniel Dubois in September 2024, when he was stopped after being knocked down repeatedly. He said there were aspects of his own performance that could have been better and declined to place all responsibility on Davison. After that defeat, Joshua had moved from Davison to work with Oleksandr Usyk's team, the Guardian reported.

The training disclosure came as Joshua and Fury appeared together to launch their long-awaited meeting. BBC Sport reported that the fight is scheduled for 11 December at Cardiff's Principality Stadium. At Wednesday's event, the rivals exchanged jokes as well as competitive remarks, and their face-off passed without confrontation.