LONDON (AP) — Former world heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua has paid tribute to his two close friends who were killed in a car accident in Nigeria.

Joshua sustained minor injuries in the late-December crash that killed Sina Ghami and Latif “Latz” Ayodele. The vehicle they were traveling in struck a stationary truck on a major road near Lagos.

"Thank you for all the love and care you have shown my brothers,” Joshua wrote Thursday on Instagram. “I didn’t even realize how special they are. I’ll just be walking with them and cracking jokes with them, not even knowing God kept me in the presence of great men.”

The 36-year-old Briton continued: "100% it’s tough for me, but I know it’s even tougher for their parents. I have a strong mind, and I believe God knows their hearts. May God have mercy on my brothers."

Ghami was Joshua’s strength and conditioning coach while Ayodele was a trainer.

Adeniyi Mobolaji Kayode, was charged with dangerous and reckless driving.

Joshua has family roots in Nigeria and he briefly attended boarding school there as a child.

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AP boxing: https://www.apnews.com/boxing