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Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk have passed their condolences to the families of Sina Ghami and Latif Ayodele, the two friends who died in a car crash in Nigeria on Monday in which the former heavyweight boxing champion Anthony Joshua was also injured.
Ayodele, also known as Latz, was a personal trainer of Joshua, while Ghami acted as strength and conditioning coach for the 36-year-old boxer. Joshua remains in hospital in Lagos, where he was described by his management team as being in a stable condition.
Fury, who had been expected to come out of retirement to fight Joshua next year, posted a tribute to Ghami and Ayodele on social media yesterday, writing: “This is so sad. May God give them a good bed in heaven.”
Usyk, the unified heavyweight champion, spoke of “an unbelievable loss” on social media, describing Ghami and Ayodele as “two incredible people who were not only a part of AJ’s team, but also friends!” Usyk passed his “sincere condolences to their families, loved ones and everyone who knew them” and wrote to Joshua: “Stay strong, champion.”
Joshua, born in Watford to Nigerian parents, had worked with Ayodele and Ghami since the beginning of his career. The crash took place on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway near Makun on Monday morning and, just hours before, Joshua and Ayodele posted footage on Instagram of them playing table tennis together.
Jake Paul, who lost to Joshua in a fight watched by 33 million people two weeks ago, also offered his condolences. “Life is much more important than boxing. I am praying for the lost lives, AJ, and anyone impacted by today’s unfortunate accident,” he wrote.
Joshua is being treated at the Duchess international hospital in Lagos, where the president of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu, said he had visited the fighter and his mother, who has been at his bedside. “I have spoken with AJ to personally convey my condolences over the passing of his two close associates, Kevin Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami, in the recent accident,” Tinubu said in a statement. “I wished him a full and speedy recovery, and prayed with him. AJ assured me he is receiving the best possible care. I also spoke with his mother and prayed for her.”
According to the government of Ogun state, where the crash took place, Joshua did not need any emergency medical intervention at the scene, despite unverified footage seeming to show him grimacing in pain as he was removed from what appeared to be the wreckage. Ogun officials did say, however, that Joshua had “narrowly escaped death”.
The federal road safety corps (FRSC) in Nigeria posted several pictures of the crash scene on X on Monday, revealing preliminary findings that suggested the Lexus “was suspected to be travelling beyond the legally prescribed speed limit”. The FRSC added the car lost control during “an overtaking manoeuvre” and crashed into a stationary truck by the side of the road.
Police commander Babatunde Akinbiyi of Nigeria’s traffic compliance and enforcement agency said early investigations showed the Lexus had been travelling along the highway from Lagos to Sagamu when it “experienced a tyre burst due to excessive speed” and lost control.
