Briton Tyson Fury said the tragic car accident involving former heavyweight champion Anthony Joshua in Nigeria, which killed two of Joshua’s team members, was a “turning point” in his decision to return to the ring.

Joshua sustained minor injuries in the December crash that claimed the lives of his strength and conditioning coach, Sina Ghami, and his trainer, Latif “Latz” Ayodele.

“The biggest turning point in this comeback for me was the tragedy that happened with Anthony Joshua,” Fury told reporters on Monday at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Fury will face Arslanbek Makhmudov on April 11 in his return bout.

“I hear all that bad news that’s gone on, and I thought, you know what, life is very short, very precious, and very fragile. Tomorrow is a mystery. We have to live for today. And me living for that day, I made my mind up there and then that I’m going to come back to boxing — because it’s something that I love, I’m passionate about, and that I’ve always been in love with.”

Fury, 37, announced his return from his latest retirement in January. This will be his first fight since losing to Oleksandr Usyk in December 2024.

-Reporting by Karan Prashant Saxena in Bengaluru; Editing by Thomas Derpinghaus/Reuters