Ben Davison, awarded as the 2023 Trainer of the Year in boxing by NoSmokeSport

2023 Trainer Of The Year – Ben Davison

Davison Eclipses BoMac For Trainer Of The Year

The two clear frontrunners for trainer of the year are Brian McIntyre (BoMac) and Ben Davison.

BoMac coached Terence Crawford to his 9th-round TKO win over Errol Spence in the most important fight in 2023 and helped Chris Eubank Jr avenge his only stoppage defeat to Liam Smith in September.

Ben Davison answered British fight fans’ wishes just days ago when Anthony Joshua easily stopped Otto Wallin in five rounds. It was a more spiteful, aggressive and confident AJ after just months with Davison and it was clear to see the impact the British trainer, alongside Lee Wylie, had on Joshua.

Leigh Wood outboxed Mauricio Lara for 16-17/19 rounds they shared across two fights in the first half of this year. A very dangerous opponent for Wood but a masterful performance in the rematch down to a near-perfect gameplan saw the Nottingham boxer take a wide decision to regain his title in their second encounter.

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The decision to throw in the towel in the first fight was controversial but in hindsight, it was a good move from the British trainer. If Wood had been brutally knocked out on that date, it would’ve been unlikely that he would’ve gotten his rematch just a few months later or at all as Josh Warrington was also considered for the fight.

When Lara came in overweight for the second fight, Davison went against the consensus once again and allowed Wood to proceed with the bout, critics said it was too dangerous to fight a puncher who weighed in a division heavier but they were silenced on the night.

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Alongside this, Davison has provided behind-the-scenes tactical advice to undisputed champion Devin Haney, who earned a career-best win over Vasyl Lomachenko in May and became a two-division titleist with a wide decision over Regis Prograis in December.

Davison has also played a part in Jordan Gill’s upset win over Michael Conlan, Fabio Wardley’s two wins this year and the development of prospects such as Pat McCormack and Royston Barney-Smith.

There is no wrong answer going with either for trainer of the year but NoSmokeSport awards it to Davison.

By Darshan Desai

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Image: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing