ANTHONY JOSHUA "SCREAMING IN PAIN" AS FATAL LEXUS WRECK KILLS TWO CLOSE FRIENDS
Heavyweight Anthony Joshua is stable in a Lagos hospital after a fatal Lexus crash on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway killed two friends.
After a brutal car wreck in Nigeria that killed two of his buddies, Anthony Joshua reportedly cried out in pain. He's spending New Year's Eve in a fancy Nigerian hospital.
Joshua, the champ, was riding in a black Lexus that crashed into a parked truck on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway in Makun, Nigeria.
Sadly, two of his longtime friends, Sina Ghami and Kevin Latif Ayodele, didn't make it. Two other people in the car survived.
Sources close to Joshua say he'll be in the hospital for at least a couple more days. Insiders say he was screaming in pain as they pulled him from the wrecked car.
Someone at the scene caught footage of the boxer grimacing before he was put in a police car.
After the crash, Joshua was rushed to Duchess International Hospital in Lagos, which is considered the best private hospital in Nigeria.
Local police told Daily Mail Sport that Joshua is stable with only minor injuries, but there's worry that they could be worse than people are saying.
Police say the car crash happened because of a tyre blowout that made Joshua's Lexus spin out of control.
The Telegraph says traffic police think the car was going too fast (over 50 mph) and lost control while trying to pass another car on a road that locals say is super dangerous.
Babatunde Akinbiyi, a police commander, said the car's tyre blew out because it was going way too fast.
An eyewitness told the Punch newspaper, "There were two cars: a Lexus SUV and a Pajero SUV."
Joshua was sitting behind the driver, with someone else next to him. Another person was sitting next to the driver, so there were four people in the Lexus that crashed. His security was in the car behind them.
Other people and I helped rescue them and flagged down cars to help. A few minutes later, the Federal Road Safety Corps showed up.
Nigeria's president said that Joshua's mom, Yeta Odusanya, rushed to the hospital to be with him after she heard about the crash.
The hospital has a fancy service called the Harley Street Practice on the sixth floor, with Royal Suites for VIP patients.
Patients get personal care around the clock and access to medical and hospitality staff. They also get gourmet meals made just for them.
The basic Royal Suite with a bathroom starts at £2,000.
Joshua's representative put out a statement confirming the deaths of his two team members and close friends:
It's with deep sadness that we have to say that Sina Ghami and Kevin Lateef Ayodele died in a car accident in Lagos, Nigeria, earlier today.
They were close friends and important members of Anthony's team.
Please give their families space and privacy as they deal with this shocking news.
Anthony was hurt in the accident and taken to the hospital for checks and treatment. He's stable and will stay there for observation.
We won't be sharing any more information right now.
Joshua's rival, Tyson Fury, honoured the two men who died in the crash in an Instagram post:
"This is so sad," wrote Fury. May God give them a good place in heaven.
The crash happened at midday, just 10 days after Joshua beat Jake Paul in Miami.
The Daily Mail said that Joshua was visiting family in Nigeria for a week before starting training for a fight in late March, probably in Saudi Arabia against Rico Verhoeven, before a possible fight with Fury in September or October.
Even though we don't know exactly how badly Joshua is hurt, it's not likely he'll be ready to fight soon. There's also the emotional stuff he'll have to deal with after the accident that killed two other people in the car.
TYSON FURY BLASTS ANTHONY JOSHUA AFTER DANIEL DUBOIS STOPS FABIO WARDLEY IN MANCHESTER
Tyson Fury has labelled Anthony Joshua "chinny" after Daniel Dubois secured the WBO heavyweight title against a resilient Fabio Wardley.
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Tyson Fury wasted no time after Daniel Dubois stopped Fabio Wardley this past weekend, using the moment to take a shot at Anthony Joshua.
Dubois picked up his second heavyweight title Saturday night in Manchester, grabbing the WBO belt from Wardley in a wild, bloodied battle that’s already being called a fight of the year candidate.
It wasn’t all smooth sailing for Dubois, though. He hit the canvas twice in the first three rounds but bounced back hard, battering Wardley late and leaving his face a mess as the final bell sounded.
Wardley never actually went down during the fight, despite looking wobbly near the end. Credit to him for sheer toughness, but Dubois still beat him decisively. This was Dubois’ first victory since his massive upset over Anthony Joshua earlier in 2024, when he floored AJ four times in one night.
On Sunday, Fury chimed in about Dubois’ latest win. With his own fight against Joshua rumoured for later this year on Netflix, Fury saw an opening to stir the pot.
“Just been thinking about Dubois’ crazy fight last night,” Fury said. Dubois fought [Jarrell] Miller, stopped him, but never put him down. He fought. [Filip] Hrgovic stopped him but never put him down. Fought Wardley last night and stopped him, but didn’t put him down. He hit Usyk with bombs but didn’t drop him. But against Anthony Joshua? Drops him five times.”
Fury added, “I’m not saying Joshua’s got no chin, but facts are facts. Take it however you want. Nobody else went down, not Miller, not Hrgovic, not Usyk, not Wardley. But Joshua hits the deck five times? Chinny, get up, slink!”
Fury is coming off a comeback win over Arslanbek Makhmudov and has already signed on to fight Joshua this year. Joshua will warm up first against Albanian heavyweight Kristian Pregna in Saudi Arabia on July 25 before facing Fury.
Promoter Frank Warren says Fury vs. AJ will probably land in October, though Fury might want another tune-up, which could push things back a bit.
As for Dubois, he’s got options. There’s talk of a rematch with Wardley, a chance to settle the score with Usyk in a trilogy, or a domestic showdown with Moses Itauma. Dubois’ dad, Stan, told talkSPORT he’d rather see his son fight another British heavyweight next, not Usyk.
HOW DANIEL DUBOIS SURVIVED TWO KNOCKDOWNS TO STOP A BLOODY FABIO WARDLEY
"I had to dig deep." Read Daniel Dubois' full reaction to his stunning comeback victory against Fabio Wardley in Manchester.
The punch that changed everything wasn't thrown by either of the fighters.
Fabio Wardley came out blazing in his title defence, dropping Daniel Dubois just 10 seconds in. He did it again in the third round, making it look like his big night. But then, something strange happened. As Dubois got up after the fourth round, his trainer, Don Charles, slapped him hard on both cheeks.
That’s when Dubois woke up. “I had to make him realise what he needed to do,” Charles said afterwards. It’s not exactly the kind of thing you see at team-building seminars, but it worked. Dubois turned on, and suddenly Wardley’s reign started to unravel.
Wardley had picked Dubois for the first fight since collecting the WBO belt that Oleksandr Usyk dropped. Honestly, it looked like a smart pick: he dropped Dubois twice and set the tone. But after that slap, Dubois started seeing Wardley’s moves coming; those wild lunges became easier to dodge.
He landed his stiff jab and followed up with savage right hands. Wardley’s jaw somehow took the hits, but his nose was pouring blood, and his right eye was almost swollen shut. He kept pushing forward, showing crazy heart, while Dubois just kept piling on. The fight turned into a brutal spectacle, the kind you can’t look away from.
Wardley got checked twice by doctors but kept fighting. Honestly, it could've stopped before the second-to-last round, when referee Howard Foster finally stepped in. Dubois got his second world title; Wardley, battered and worn, just managed a thumbs up to his mum.
Dubois summed it up later: “I had to dig really deep. When you’re a warrior, you go to dark places. I was nervous at first, all over the place, and had to fight my own battles. That slap woke me up. My dad and everyone were in my corner; I couldn’t let them down.
“Fabio came to fight; he was tough. We were exhausted; it was a real war. I had to use all my skills to win. Great fight, great battle, and I’m No. 1 again.” Sure, Usyk might argue about that, but Dubois proved something; he got up off the canvas and won.
People have called Dubois a quitter since the Joe Joyce fight six years ago. Wardley himself thought Dubois would fold again in Manchester, and for three rounds it looked like he was right until reality snapped Dubois awake.
