‘He’s a bad boy coach’ – Anthony Joshua admits he did not see everyone he wanted to before appointing Robert Garcia

ANTHONY JOSHUA says “bad boy coach” Robert Garcia was the “standout” option – although he admits he did not visit every trainer he wanted to in America.

The British boxing star axed Robert McCracken following his defeat to Oleksandr Usyk in September and descended on a tour of the States in search of a new mentor.

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Anthony Joshua (left) has hailed his new trainer Robert Garcia (right) as a ‘bad boy’[/caption]

AJ, 32, visited the likes of Virgil Hunter, Eddy Reynoso and Ronnie Shields but it was Garcia that impressed him the most.

He has now teamed up with Angel Fernandez to prepare Joshua for his August 20 rematch with Usyk in Saudi Arabia with a camp at Loughborough University.

Joshua will step up his training by heading to Dubai in order to begin acclimatising to the Middle East heat.

Many people believe that Garcia, who has a track record of producing aggressive and powerful fighters, is the perfect choice for the two-time heavyweight world champion.

And Joshua completely agrees – although he revealed that he failed to meet some of the coaches he intended to while in the US.

He told JD Sports: “Texas, Fresno, LA, I saw a lot of coaches everywhere before choosing my new trainer – and there were coaches that I didn’t get to see – but he was the standout. Robert Garcia is a bad boy coach.”

McCracken had guided Joshua to Olympic gold glory back in 2012 and two reigns as champ but after the star was outclassed by Usyk last Autumn he felt it was time for a change.

AJ explained: “All these heavyweights are training because they want to take what you have so you have to train like you haven’t got anything.

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“As a fighter, it’s important to stay in the gym all year round and I’ve known the fighter I’m fighting, so the approach to the fight has been leading towards the date.

“When I first turned pro, I did my first few training camps in Eddie’s [Hearn] back garden. That’s where we first started.

“Then, I moved to Tony Sims’ gym, for probably the first two or three fights, and then after that, I was allowed to train in Sheffield.

“I’ve been a pro for nine years, so for about seven or eight years I’ve been in Sheffield and this is my first time training out of there, but for 11 years, I trained with Rob [McCracken].”