Boxing superstar Anthony Joshua has been slightly injured in a serious car accident in Nigeria that claimed two lives.
The Matchroom Boxing agency said the dead were team members and friends of the former world champion.
Joshua “sustained injuries in the accident and was taken to hospital for checks and treatment. There he will continue to be monitored,” the statement said.
The exact circumstances of the accident remain under investigation. Local police said in a statement that the Lexus in which Joshua was riding “was believed to have exceeded the legal speed limit on the relevant stretch of road, lost control during an overtaking maneuver and crashed into a truck parked on the side of the road.”
The accident occurred on a busy highway between Ogun and Lagos.
Anthony Joshua probably in the back seat in the accident
At the time of the accident, Joshua was sitting in the back seat of the car behind the driver, and his two fatally wounded companions were on the right side of the vehicle. So in the passenger seat and the space behind it in the back seat. Joshua’s parents are from Nigeria.
Joshua sent Wladimir Klitschko into boxing retirement in a spectacular duel in 2017 and then dominated the heavyweight division for a time, but the 2012 Olympic champion has suffered numerous setbacks in recent years.
Most recently, Joshua won a fight against influencer Jake Paul that was of little sporting significance, but the fight earned him a fee of at least $30 million.