Anthony Joshua on Being Criticized by Robert Garcia: 'There Should Be a Level of Respect, I Didn't Like That'

London's Joshua said he found it "weird" that Robert Garcia was so quick to criticize his effort against Oleksandr Usyk in their rematch that took place last August in Saudi Arabia; Joshua suffered a points defeat for the second time in a row to the Ukrainian southpaw and holder of the WBO, WBA, IBF, and IBO belts.

Garcia, a veteran trainer from Southern California who linked up with Joshua specifically for the Usyk rematch, told an outlet that he thought Joshua was "mentally defeated" by the 10th round. Garcia also suggested that he had urged Joshua to put more pressure on Usyk earlier in the fight.

The remarks were greeted with some surprise from the boxing world, as it is rare for trainers to openly criticize their own fighters, no matter how cordial or constructive.

The comments appeared to have done enough damage to bring their short-lived union to a halt, as Joshua then decided to pair up with Derrick James, the trainer of Errol Spence and Jermell Charlo. Joshua's first fight under James will take place this Saturday when he takes on Michigan's Jermaine Franklin at O2 Arena in London.

In a recent interview, Joshua made it clear he did not appreciate the way Garcia comported himself, saying that he thinks Garcia broke with decorum.

"When it comes to your head coach I think it is important to keep things in-house, especially when you are talking about your fighters," Joshua told Boxing News. "There are things I didn't like about some of my old coaches that I could talk about but I don't.

"No one is perfect but, when you come together in arms to go to war, there should be a level of respect. I have worked with Sean Murphy and John Oliver in the amateurs; all the GB coaches; Tony Sims and Rob McCracken in the pros; Angel Fernandez; Joby Clayton; Robert Garcia and Derrick James and Garcia is the first one to say the things he said.

"And I didn't like that, I found it weird. I am not perfect, trust me, I do have tough days in camp, but he went and pointed those things out, out of all the things we did in training camp."