Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has paid an emotional tribute to two close friends who were killed in a car crash in Nigeria, describing them as “brothers” and “great men.”

Joshua sustained minor injuries in the December 29 crash. After being discharged from hospital, he returned to England and attended the funerals of Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami last Sunday.

“Thank you for all the love and care you have shown my brothers,” Joshua wrote on Instagram.
*”I didn’t even realise how special they are. I’ll just be walking with them and cracking jokes with them, not even knowing God kept me in the presence of great men.

“100% it’s tough for me, but I know it’s even tougher for their parents. I have a strong mind, and I believe God knows their hearts. May God have mercy on my brothers.”*

Ayodele, Joshua’s personal trainer, and Ghami, his long-time strength and conditioning coach, both died at the scene of the accident.

Nigerian authorities have charged the driver of the vehicle, 46-year-old Adeniyi Mobolaji Kayode, with “dangerous driving causing death.”

The crash occurred on a busy highway linking Lagos and Ibadan in southwest Nigeria, when the Lexus SUV in which they were travelling collided with a stationary truck.

Joshua, 36, who has family roots in Nigeria, had been on holiday in the country following his December 19 victory over YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in Miami.