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Deontay Wilder has encouraged Anthony Joshua to stay strong as he grieves for his two friends. Joshua was inside the car when a crash in Nigeria claimed the lives of Latif “Latz” Ayodele and Sina Ghami in late December.

The two 36-year-olds were close friends of Joshua and part of his inner circle. The British boxing star recently spoke about how their deaths had affected him and vowed to continue his "mission" for his "brothers".

Joshua said: “I’m gonna do what’s right by them. I’m gonna do what’s right by their family.” It remains to be seen whether he will continue his boxing career, having last fought in December when he defeated Jake Paul in a highly lucrative Netflix fight.

Wilder is poised to take on Derek Chisora in April and used his media duties for that fight to send a message to Joshua. "Stay encouraged Anthony Joshua. Keep your head up Anthony Joshua," he told BBC Sport.

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"My words may not mean anything, you know, at this moment in time. Maybe later on [they will]. I don't know where he is mentally, emotionally, physically or spiritually. But I know that I would advise him to stay strong, black man. Stay strong. As long as you can.

"Surround yourself with loved ones, surround yourself with positive speaking, positive thinking. It's tough to find the words to tell a person, you understand? But know what you are in our prayers. You know, prayer changes things all the time.

"And understand that a family [that] prays together stays together. They stick up for each other, they provide for each other. And in this boxing business, we are all a family, you understand me?"

Joshua hinted that he is not considered retiring from boxing - and that he wants to continue his career in memory of his close allies. “I’ve lost people before, but I don’t think I’ve lost people like that, my left and my right," he said. “The mission must go on… I understand my duty.”

Wilder is fighting his friend Chisora on April 4 at the O2 Arena as he bids to revive his career after a possible bout with Oleksandr Usyk failed to materialise. “God is an on-time guy," he said. "This is when it’s supposed to happen. We all have respect for each other. I think it’s going to bring us even more closer.

“I don’t think either of us is bigger than the other. It takes two fighters to be great and do that they have to do. Let the best fights happen at the time they should happen. We’ve got a sick mind to be able to fight each other like this.”