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Morrell meets Abel Sanchez in Huge Bear looking for a up-to-date coach

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9 months ago

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Image: David Morrell's Post-Benavidez Revelation: The Cost of Caution and a Blueprint for Dominance Against Imam Khataev

According to reports, David Morrell is visiting trainer Abel Sanchez at his gym in Huge Bear, California to see if the two are a good combination to replace the Cuban fighter’s coach.

Assessing Abel Sanchez’s coaching fit

Boxing expert Carlos Linares reports that Morrell is looking for a successor to his coach, Ronnie Shieldswith whom he has been working since 2023, in Houston, Texas. For Morrell and Sanchez to work together, he must follow and follow the instructions he receives from his corner. There’s no point in Morrell switching coaches to Abel if he’s not going to follow his orders.

Former two-division world champion Morrell (12-1, 9 KO) is trying to regain the form he had in his career before his last three disappointing performances against Imam Khataev, David Benavidez and Radivoje Kalajdzic.

In each of these fights, Morrell seemed to lose focus, fighting only in compact bursts and struggling. Morrell has shown mental concentration issues in these fights that need to be fixed if he wants to succeed at lightweight heavyweight.

Khataev Bout exposed key weaknesses

In 27-year-old Morrell’s last fight with Khataev (10-1, 9 KO) on July 12, 2025, he was knocked down in the fifth round and won what many boxing fans considered a controversial 10-round split decision.

For most of the fight, Morrell shot behind the high guard and leaned against the ropes, allowing Khataev to rush him. In moments like these, he fought more like a sparring partner.

In rounds nine and ten, Morrell seemingly hurt Khataev, but inexplicably withdrew and camouflaged himself rather than fight for the finish with the tired Russian fighter. It looked strange. In Morrell’s corner, his trainer, Shields, could be seen giving him strict instructions. However, Morrell continued to follow the same pattern as in the previous rounds, fighting sporadically and hiding too often.

Aftermath of the Battle of Benavidez

Earlier this year, Morrell lost his “regular” WBA lightweight heavyweight title to David Benavidez via 12-round unanimous decision on February 1, 2025. Much like Morrell’s fight with Khataev, he hid for long periods of time, allowing “Mexican Monster” Benavidez to bombard him with compact punches, overwhelming him with arrows. The scores were 118-108, 115-111 and 115-111.

When Morrell let go of his hands, Benavidez was injured in round 4 and dropped him in round 11. Again, Morrell was inconsistent in his attack and spent too much time hiding. As a result, Benavidez won a surprisingly straightforward decision over the stronger Morrell. In retrospect, it was a fight that Morrell could have potentially won if he had combined Benavidez’s non-stop striking style with his extraordinary strength.

A strategic argument for returning to 168 pounds

One move Morrell could potentially make if he teams up with trainer Abel Sanchez is to move back down to 168. That’s a better weight class for the Cuban given his fast-fighting approach. His strength is greater at super middleweight than at 175. If Morrell doesn’t change his style, he won’t do well at lightweight heavyweight because excelling at that weight requires a more consistent attacking effort.

Analyst Verdict: Can Sanchez Re-ignite Morrell’s Fire?

Working with Abel Sanchez would be the right coach for David Morrell, who could refocus and fight with more consistent aggression than he has shown in his last three contests. Abel is less forgiving of fighters who are withdrawn, do not follow instructions, and do not exert maximum effort. If Morrell doesn’t follow Sanchez’s instructions, it will be a problem.

Sanchez expects his players to apply pressure and maintain the advantage over their opponents. Former fighters Abel trained at his high-altitude Huge Bear gym in California:

  • Gennady “GGG” Golovkin
  • Terry Norris
  • Murat Gasijew
  • Lupe Aquino
  • Orlin Norris
  • Miguel Angel Gonzalez

If Cuban Morrell is willing to listen to Sanchez and follow his stringent discipline, he can regain what he has recently lost in his last three appearances. However, if Morrell continues to lose focus and do whatever he wants in rounds, working with Sanchez in Huge Bear will not save his career. At age 27, it’s not too overdue for Morrell to turn his career around and achieve the success he had at 168, but it will require change.

Last update: 27/10/2025

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Boxing

Usyk Analyzes Anthony Joshuas Performance Against Kristian Prenga After Overcoming Two Knockdowns

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1 day ago

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July 25, 2026

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"Usyk Analyzes Anthony Joshua's Performance Against Kristian Prenga After Overcoming Two Knockdowns"

Oleksandr Usyk has shared his reaction to Anthony Joshua‘s dramatic knockout victory against Kristian Prenga.

Usyk nearly suffered his own shock defeat in May when he was pushed to the limit by kickboxing star Rico Verhoevenand two months on it was nrw teammate Joshua’s turn to come close to a massive upset loss that would have stunned the heavyweight division.

The Brit was dropped twice by massive underdog Prenga in the opening round of their clash in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, but ‘AJ’ managed to recover and record a big knockdown of his own in the second round that resulted in the stoppage victory.

Joshua and Usyk now train together, having famously had two battles for the unified world heavyweight title in 2021 and 2022, and the Ukrainian has had his say on his stablemate’s victory over Prenga.

Speaking to TalkSporttwo-time undisputed champion Usyk praised Joshua, insisting ‘AJ is back’ before predicting that Joshua will now claim a knockout win over long-term rival Tyson Fury in his next bout.

“Anthony Joshua is next undisputed champion. First round it’s a test but AJ is back.

It’s boxing, [the] big upper cut is good, it’s a knockdown. AJ [come] back and win.

“Greedy Belly [Fury] will speak now and say weak chin, Greedy Belly get out. AJ wins [against Fury], [he will] knock him out.”

Fury was victorious on Friday as he earned a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach in Thailand, paving the way for the showdown against Joshua later this year.

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Boxing

Jake Paul Reacts to Anthony Joshuas Stunning Victory Over Kristian Prenga After Two Early Knockdowns

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1 day ago

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July 25, 2026

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"Jake Paul Reacts to Anthony Joshua's Stunning Victory Over Kristian Prenga After Two Early Knockdowns"

Jake Paul was the last man to fight Anthony Joshua and he has now revealed his verdict on AJ’s chaotic victory over Kristian Prenga.

Joshua went up against Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturdayin a clash that was expected to be a comfortable win for the former world heavyweight champion in order to set up the long overdue battle against Tyson Fury.

Any hopes of seeing that clash were nearly ended after AJ was dropped twice in the opening round of the bout, though he was able to recover and claim the second round knockout to come out on top and prevent a stunning shock upset from taking place.

Saturday’s outing saw Joshua back in the ring for the first time since his sixth round triumph over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul back in Decemberand now ‘The Problem Child’ himself has shared his reaction to his former rival’s victory over Prenga.

Posting on social mediaPaul praised AJ for earning the win, after returning to action following the tragic car crash he was involved in at the end of last year which took the lives of his two close friends.

“Happy for Joshua with that win after all he’s been through. Remembering Sina and Latz with this one.”

The win for Joshua should now tee up for meeting with Fury later this year, after ‘The Gypsy King’ held up his end of the bargain by also securing a win in his warm-up bout on Friday, securing a seventh round retirement win against Mariusz Wach.

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Boxing

Tony Bellew Reviews Anthony Joshuas Comeback Victory Over Kristian Prenga After Knockdown Drama

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1 day ago

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July 25, 2026

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Tony Bellew Reviews Anthony Joshua's Comeback Victory Over Kristian Prenga After Knockdown Drama

Anthony Joshua may have earned a knockout win over Kristian Prenga but the fight certainly didn’t unfold as most people expected.

Joshua was facing the Albanian in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on Saturday, and it looked like a massive upset could be on the cards when he was dropped twice in the opening round.

‘AJ’ was able to recover and went on to secure a second round knockout victory to prevent the shock lossseemingly paving the way for the battle against Tyson Fury later this year.

One man who was ringside to witness the battle was former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellewand he praised Joshua’s ability to turn things around in the fight after describing it as ‘chaos’.

“We predicted round two but I don’t think we foresaw that. That was chaos. He doesn’t see the uppercut coming and finds himself on the floor without knowing how he got there.

“The second one he did see it coming and he was able to clench down on the jaw. He got up and then the experience that he has he used tonight because he tied him up. Against Andy Ruiz he didn’t know what he was doing and didn’t know how to do that, but tonight he did.

“He showed once again there is no quit. To be that hurt in the first round and get up, that’s the recoveries of power. People talk about your chin, but it’s not, it’s the level of fitness that gets you up from the floor.

“When Joshua gets a fighter hurt he’s the best finisher in the division. Whenever he hurts someone they’re gone. I haven’t seen him drop anybody and they survive, only Andy Ruiz. He’s a ruthless finisher.”

The clash between Joshua and Fury is now expected to be announced soon for later this year, after Fury won his own interim fight on Friday by defeating Mariusz Wach.

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