Anthony Joshua on Thursday broke weeks of public silence and spoke on camera for the first time since a car crash which killed two of the former world heavyweight champion’s close friends.
In a video posted on his YouTube channel, Joshua held back tears at one point as he reflected on the loss of backroom team members Latif Ayodele and Sina Ghami, describing the pair as his “brothers”.
The British fighter was a passenger in an SUV that collided with a stationary truck on a busy highway linking Lagos and Ibadan in Nigeria on December 29, and sustained minor injuries in the accident that claimed their lives.
“I know what I have got to do,” Joshua said in the video shared Thursday evening, speaking directly into the camera.
“I’m going to do what is right by them, do what is right by their family and it is about what is important.”
Joshua added that he understood what the pair had “wanted to do for their families” and that his goal “is to continue to help them achieve their goals”.
Ayodele was the personal trainer of the former two-time unified heavyweight champion while Ghami was Joshua’s strength and conditioning coach. Both died at the scene of the crash.
In his video, Joshua gave little away about his boxing plans, but noted “the mission must go on”.
“It ain’t about legacy, it’s just about doing what is right and I know I am going to do what is right by them,” he reiterated.
The accident occurred weeks after Joshua stopped YouTuber-turned-boxer Jake Paul in Miami to stay on course to face old foe Tyson Fury this year.
Fury has since announced his eagerly anticipated return to the ring and is set to face Arslanbek Makhmudov on April 11.
The fate of the mooted all-British battle between the two heavyweights Joshua and Fury remains unclear, with speculation the former could now retire.
But promoter Eddie Hearn has said the 36-year-old Joshua would be given all the time he needed to cope with the loss.
Earlier this month, Joshua shared online footage of himself returning to the gym, hitting pads with a trainer for what he called “mental strength therapy”.
In the video posted Thursday, Joshua said: “One day my time will come and I’m not scared either at all. It’s actually comforting knowing that I’ve got two brothers on the other side.
“I’ve lost people before, but I don’t think I’ve lost people like that, my left and my right, you know?”