Joshua not ready for death of friends to 'sink in'

Joshua copes with grief ahead of return fight

Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has revealed he is not yet ready to let the loss of two close friends and team members 'sink in'. Sina Ghami and Latif 'Latz' Ayodele died on 29 December 2025 when the vehicle carrying Joshua and another passenger collided with a stationary truck on a major road near Lagos, Nigeria. Joshua sustained minor injuries.

Joshua is set to return to the ring on Saturday against heavyweight Kristian Prenga, his first contest since knocking out American YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul ten days before the crash. The 36-year-old told BBC Sport: "It's tough, every time I think about it, it hurts. Even talking about it now... pictures… it hurts but I keep my mind occupied you know. If I stop, you let it sink in and I'm not ready for it to sink in yet."

Ghami was Joshua's full-time sport and exercise rehabilitation coach and worked with him for more than 10 years. Hours before the crash, Joshua posted an Instagram video of him playing table tennis with his long-time friend Ayodele, a personal trainer.

Saturday's fight will be Joshua's first competitive bout since his knockout loss to IBF world champion Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium in September 2024. The former champion admitted to feeling "a little bit nervous" before his return. "It's competition at the highest level," he said. "I want to perform for my team, I want to make them proud and make myself proud. It's a balance of nerves but I understand what my job is. [I have] a lot of understanding and clarity on what I have to do."

A long-awaited fight between Joshua and fellow Briton Tyson Fury is expected later this year if both win their respective bouts. Fury faces Poland's Mariusz Wach in Pattaya, Thailand on Friday. Wach, 46, is expected to be Fury's final opponent before the 'Battle of Britain' against Joshua.

Fury's bout takes place the night before Joshua's scheduled clash with Albania's Prenga in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, which could allow Fury to attend his rival's event. Joshua previously declined Fury's invitation for a face-off after the latter's victory over Arslanbek Makhmudov in April, but the Olympic gold medallist admits a face-off might not be far off. "I'm not overlooking Prenga. This is a big deal for me this fight. God willing, everything works out. If it's not Saturday night where we face-off, it will be within the next four to six weeks. It's a big mark to leave on the sport. If I win on Saturday and I could win later in the year, it's massive. The stars are aligned and I have to make sure that I'm on course. It's out there for me to go and do. It's going to be challenging but I can be the coward or the hero and I have to decide what I want to be."