Anthony Joshua stated that he is not ready for the deaths of two close friends and team members to "sink in yet" as he prepares for his first boxing match since their passing. Sina Ghami, Joshua's sport and exercise rehabilitation coach of over 10 years, and Latif "Latz" Ayodele, a personal trainer, died on December 29, 2026, when their vehicle collided with a stationary truck near Lagos, Nigeria. Joshua, who sustained minor injuries in the crash, is scheduled to fight Kristian Prenga on Saturday. This will be his first contest in the ring since he knocked out Jake Paul, a YouTuber-turned-boxer, ten days prior to the accident.
"It's tough, every time I think about it, it hurts," Joshua told BBC Sport. "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."
Hours before the fatal crash, Joshua had posted a video on Instagram of himself playing table tennis with Ayodele. Ghami had worked with Joshua for more than a decade. The upcoming bout against Prenga marks Joshua's first competitive fight since his knockout loss to IBF world champion Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium in September 2024. Joshua acknowledged feeling "a little bit nervous" about his return to competition, describing it as "competition at the highest level." He added, "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."