Nigerian-British heavyweight boxer Anthony Joshua dedicated his victory over Kristian Prenga to his late trainers, Sina Ghami and Latif “Latz” Ayodele, after recovering from two first-round knockdowns to secure a second-round knockout victory.
The contest was Joshua’s first since a road traffic accident in Ogun State, Nigeria, in December claimed the lives of Ghami, his strength and conditioning coach, and Ayodele, his personal trainer.
Joshua entered the ring wearing camouflage attire bearing the names of the two men in tribute to their memory.
Speaking after the fight, the former world heavyweight champion said the victory was dedicated to his late coaches and their families.
“It’s what champions do. We rise, we get knocked down and we stand up and keep going. That’s life.
“It was more than punch power. That was spirit, that was Latz, that was Sina and their families. It still hurts to talk about it. It’s been tough,” he said.
Joshua, who started the fight as the overwhelming favourite, endured a difficult opening round after Prenga knocked him down twice in the opening three minutes.
The Briton recovered in the second round, however, taking control of the contest before stopping the Albanian to record a knockout victory.
His promoter, Eddie Hearn, praised Joshua’s resilience, describing the performance as remarkable given the personal loss he had experienced.
“No one can imagine what Anthony has been through in the last seven months. To even step into the ring was astonishing,” Hearn said.
He added that Joshua had used his training camp to remain focused while coping with grief and had shown exceptional determination to recover after being knocked down twice.
Hearn also confirmed that contracts had been signed for a long-awaited heavyweight bout between Joshua and fellow Briton Tyson Fury, although the date and venue have yet to be announced.
Fury, who defeated 46-year-old Mariusz Wach in Thailand on Friday, did not attend Joshua’s fight, having returned to the Isle of Man after his own bout.
