Tyson Fury has reacted to the fatal car crash Anthony Joshua was involved in on Monday, paying his condolences to the two victims.
The former world heavyweight champion’s friends Sina Ghami and Kevin Latif Ayodele were killed in the the accident, which occurred on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in Makun, Nigeria.
The vehicle Joshua and his friends were travelling in hit a stationary truck, with the 36-year-old escaping with minor injuries, but still being looked after in hospital, with some fears that his condition could be worse than first thought.
Just hours before the crash, Joshua had shared a video with his followers on social media that showed him enjoying a game of table tennis with Ayodele, who was affectionately known as ‘Latz’ to close friends.
Both men have been long-time members of Joshua’s team, with Ayodele working as a personal trainer and Ghami as AJ’s strength and conditioning coach.
Fury, who was expected to face Joshua in the ring in a long-awaited 2026 bout, put rivalries aside after the heart-breaking accident.
Reacting to the news of the tragic deaths, Fury wrote on Instagram: ‘This is so sad. May God give them a good bed in heaven.’
Fury also reposted an interview with Joshua from earlier this year which was conducted by Boxing King Media, which feels especially poignant after the awful events of Monday.
‘With the death thing. I don’t know, I just look at life and I’m just like, man it’s crazy like all of this stuff here, believe it or not, is just a distraction, in my opinion,’ Joshua said at an event earlier this year.
‘In the grand scheme of things, everything I chase and everything I want to own to make me feel relevant on this earth is not so important because I can’t take it with me. That’s what’s guaranteed, is death.
Who were Anthony Joshua's friends Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami?
Throughout his time in boxing, Anthony Joshua has kept a close-knit circle of friends and associates around him, plenty of those working silently behind the scenes during his ascent to the summit of the sport.
Both Ghami and Ayodele were part of that group, considered good friends having worked closely with him for years.
Who is Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele?
‘Latz’ is a long-time friend of Joshua’s and has been part of the AJ team going all the way back to his maiden world title victory over Charles Martin in 2016.
Ayodele was Joshua’s personal trainer and a dedicated Muslim having converted to Isam in 2012.
His Instagram feed is littered with images and videos of him alongside Joshua in the gym and relaxing away from it.
Just hours before the crash, he shared a video on Instagram of him and Joshua smiling and laughing over a game of table tennis.
Latif worked with a number of other prominent sports men and women with New Zealand rugby legend Sonny Bill Williams among those paying tribute.
According to his Facebook profile, he attended St Joan of Arc Catholic School in Rickmansworth, a few miles from Joshua’s hometown of Watford.
Who is Sina Ghami?
Ghami was Joshua’s strength and conditioning coach, a role he held for more than a decade.
He was also the co-founder of Evolve Gym in London. Their website states Ghami was a qualified sports and exercise rehabilitator who specialises in musculoskeletal injuries and corrective exercise.
Ghami was at Joshua’s side throughout his career, including his crowning moment against Wladimir Klitschko at Wembley Stadium in 2017.
His last Instagram story appeared to be a shot of Joshua’s motorcade through Lagos.
‘All that’s going to be important is just living to the best of our capability.
‘Ain’t it mad how fast life will go, we’ll be old and one day all that will matter is living to the best of our capabilities.
‘I went to see my granddad the other day, he’s very old now, I was thinking, all that matters to him is who’s looking after him at his elderly age because he can’t really look after himself anymore.
‘It’s mad that at one stage of his life that going to work was the most important thing ever. Now, to that business he’s nothing because he’s too old and to him that work relationship he had with his life is nothing.’
Joshua’s promoter, Eddie Hearn, shared a statement on Monday evening which explained that the boxer was still in hospital ‘in a stable condition’ as the names of the victims in the crash were confirmed.
‘Anthony Joshua was involved in a road traffic accident in Lagos, Nigeria, earlier today,’ the statement read.
‘With profound sadness it has been confirmed that two close friends and team members Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele have tragically passed away.
‘Matchroom Boxing and 258 BXG can confirm that Anthony sustained injuries in the accident and was taken to hospital for checks and treatment. He is in a stable condition and will remain there for observation.
‘Our deepest condolences and prayers are with the families and friends of all those affected – and we ask that their privacy is respected at this incredibly difficult time.
‘No further comment will be made at this time.’
