Anthony Joshua Involved In Ghastly Car Accident In Nigeria With Two Dead A Week After Jake Paul Fight

Anthony Joshua has survived a fatal road accident in Nigeria that claimed the lives of two other people.

His promoter has said he has been trying to get in contact with the Boxing champion, as images flooding the internet suggest he is okay but has sustained minor injuries.

Anthony Joshua was expected to take to the ring in February after defeating YouTuber Jake Paul in a six-round fight.

Anthony Joshua was traveling around 11 am local time along the busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway near Makun when his Lexus SUV collided with a stationary truck.

Images of the shirtless Nigerian-British boxer looking dumbfounded and lost for words following the accident have hit the internet. He can be seen sitting among shattered glass at the back seat and had another vehicle carrying his security detail.

The situation surrounding the crash is still under investigation as eyewitnesses claim 2 people lost their lives. A government official waded into the situation, saying an ambulance service has been sent to the scene.

Joshua's promoter, Eddie Hearn, released a brief statement confirming he was aware of the incident and had tried to contact the boxer.

"I am away on a family holiday and awoke to the news of this incident," he told the Daily Mail. "We are trying to contact Anthony, and in the meantime, we don't want to speculate on how he is, but thankfully, he appears OK from what I have seen in the images."

Hearn added, "We are awaiting more information on what has happened and will update in due course."

Joshua has been in the West African country for the holidays following his 6th round victory over YouTuber Jake Paul in Miami earlier this month.

It remains to be seen if he'll still take to the ring in February, as he was expected to fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.

An eyewitness who seemingly participated in initial rescue efforts before the authorities arrived told Punch NG that Joshua's traveling companions died on the spot.

"It was a two-vehicle convoy: a Lexus SUV and a Pajero SUV. Joshua was seated behind the driver, with another person beside him. There was also a passenger sitting beside the driver, making four occupants in the Lexus that crashed. His security detail was in the vehicle behind them before the crash," the individual, identified as Adeniyi Orojo, said.

"Other eyewitnesses and I began the rescue and flagged down oncoming vehicles to assist. A few minutes after the crash, officials of the Federal Road Safety Corps arrived. The passenger beside the driver and the person beside Joshua died on the spot," he added.

Some hours before the crash, Joshua updated his Instagram stories where he is seen playing table tennis with his close pal Kevin Ayodele, writing: "@healthy_mindset dishing out table tennis smoke."

Social media has since been flooded with messages of support and concern for the former two-time heavyweight champion.

"You can't die. Definitely not today. Bless up champ," an X user wrote, while another said, "Omo!!! Stay strong, Anthony Joshua. You've won this battle."

A third person wrote, "Quick recovery, man. You are strong forever."

Someone else said, "Seeing a champion in a crash like this breaks me. Sending love and prayers."

Joshua's deadly car accident comes a week after he defeated YouTuber-turned-boxer, Jake Paul, in a six-round match.

The boxing match, which was livestreamed on Netflix, saw both fighters evenly split a whopping £136m [$183m] in earnings, with reports claiming they both earned £69,000 [$93,000] for every one of the 989 seconds they were in the ring.

After the match, Joshua spoke highly of Paul, stating that it wasn't his "best performance" as it took him a bit longer to defeat the influencer.

"The end goal was to get Jake Paul, pin him down, and hurt him. That has been the request, and that was on my mind. Took a bit longer than expected, but the right hand found the destination," Joshua said.

The 36-year-old added, "Jake Paul has done really well tonight. I want to give him his props. He got up, time and time again. It was difficult in there for him, but he kept on trying to find a way through. You have to give Jake his respect for trying, trying, and trying. But he came up against a real fighter tonight that's had a 15-month lay-off."