Anthony Joshua makes heartbreaking confession as he opens up on death of friends for first time

Anthony Joshua has paid an emotional tribute to his two close friends following their death in a car crash last month.

Just over a week after he triumphed against Jake Paul in a money-spinning fight live on Netflix, the British heavyweight was caught in a car crash in Nigeria that saw two of his best friends, Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami, tragically lose their lives.

The driver of the vehicle has since been charged with causing death by dangerous driving, of which he has pleaded not guilty, as the Lexus SUV crashed into a stationary van on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway, known to be one of the busiest motorways in Nigeria, on 29 December.

While he escaped with relatively minor injuries, the crash was a life-changing one as he said in his first statement following the incident that he 'didn’t even realise how special they are', adding: "May God have mercy on my brothers."

Joshua has since issued a social media update after the crash, and in a recent video posted on 29 January, he spoke about Ayodele and Ghami, whom he called his 'brothers'.

Speaking in a video on Instagram, he said that the three of them 'had so many plans to wrap up 2025', adding: "We went home, we went to see our families, and everything got flipped upside on its head.

“That was such an unforeseen circumstance that was out of all of our control. And not only did their parents, their uncles, their cousins, their friends and myself, lose two great men, we lost people that we dearly care about, and have been major players in all of our lives; major, major players in all of our lives. It’s tough. It’s really tough.

“I’m not going to sit here and show all of my emotions. I know, in today’s day and age, it’s easy to microanalyse people and pass judgment, but I know what I felt and all that matters to me."

The boxer went on to say that Ayodele and Ghami were his 'brothers' and 'friends, first and foremost' before they became 'business partners'.

He continued: "One day my time will come, and I’m not scared either – at all. It’s actually comforting knowing that I’ve got two brothers on the other side.

“You know, I’ve lost people before, but I don’t think I’ve lost people like that, my left and my right. I didn’t even realise that I’m the big guy, you know what I mean? But I was walking with giants, who kept me protected, kept me shielded.

"But the mission must go on, and I understand my duty. I understand what they wanted to do for their families."

Joshua said that his goal now is to 'help their families and to help them achieve their goals', adding: “I’m going to help them fulfil their dreams for their families. Not only me, though, helping. There’s a whole team of us. I’m going to do what’s right by their family.

"It’s about what’s important to me, and they’re very important players, very important team members, very important friends and two of my brothers.”

Finally, he thanked the public for their support and paid tribute to the close family of his two friends, vowing to give them the support they need in the wake of such a horrific accident.

He concluded: “I don’t think I’ve mentioned the love and appreciation. It’s all acknowledged by me, by them, by their families, 100 per cent.

"We acknowledge the thousands, maybe going into millions, around the world that showed so much love to them both.

“We heard you all, we saw the messages, the tweets, the social media, the YouTubes, the prayers, it’s all been acknowledged. So, yeah, we know what we’re going to do. Momma Latz, Momma Sina, Papa Latz, Papa Sina, one love.”