As World Boxing News reported first on November 1 of this year, Anthony Joshua brought in a new coach for his revenge attempt against Andy Ruiz Jr.
Angel Fernandez, a young new trainer plying his trade with the likes of Isaac Chamberlain, was drafted by Joshua to help out Robert McCracken.
A fresher approach was needed for Joshua following a terrible loss to Ruiz in New York. Fernandez is now being lauded as the mastermind.
Alongside mentoring from former opponent Wladimir Klitschko, Joshua eased to victory over a tubbier Ruiz. Jabbing and dancing his way to a unanimous decision in Saudi Arabia.
Since then, Fernandez has firmly seen his stock rise. This is due to many seeing his influence as the major factor in the manner of performance.
Before the fight, comments predicted the outcome.
Angel Fernandez and Anthony Joshua
“With this (style) in mind, Joshua has brought in Angel Fernandez. A coach with a primarily Cuban schooling, focusing on defence, creating angles and movement. All of those factors will benefit Joshua in this fight IF he has had enough time to adjust his style, if not he may struggle.”
“Huge, huge fight later on. Enormous amounts of pressure on Anthony Joshua – whoever wins deserves all the props in the world but I think AJ correcting things during training camp (less strength work, more boxing/Angel Fernandez) will see him through.
Several comments on social media backed up this apparent situation in the aftermath.
“Angel Fernandez got Joshua to his best.”
“Over the moon for @angel_boxeo. Welcomed into AJ’s camp for this massive fight & beautiful boxing occurred ???? #JoshuaRuiz2 2X World Champion. A part of history made already in his short coaching career.”
“His vision since I first spoke to him was to guide his fighters into the right mind to become a champion. The guys a f***ing psychologist & a boxing coach in one. What he has done for Isaac’s mindset I’ll always respect him for. Brought him back from a bad place & has grew him.”
“Angel Fernandez’s impact was clear!!”
FUTURE
Fernandez is now set to be a firm fixture in the future of Joshua’s career, potentially with McCracken focusing more on the management side of things.
No official word has been released on this yet. But WBN understands Fernandez is going by the moniker ‘Technical Coach’. Fernandez was firmly in charge of perfecting Joshua’s technique for the whole camp.
McCracken dealt more with arranging sessions and bringing in sparring partners. It seems a good mix moving forward.
