Anthony Joshua says he is standing strong “as a soldier” for the parents of two close friends killed in a car crash as the British heavyweight prepares for his return to boxing.

The two-time world champion was a passenger in the car when Sina Ghami and Latif ‘Latz’ Ayodele died in Nigeria in December.

In his first fight since the accident, in which Joshua sustained minor injuries, he will face the relatively unknown Albanian Kristian Prenga in Riyadh on 25 July.

“You never overcome it but you gain perspective in life,” Joshua, 36, told the 5 Live Boxing podcast.

“Life is humbling at times. You never know one’s fate. As a soldier, I stand strong for their parents first and foremost.

“This isn’t about me. I feel it’s important to put their parents first at the minute.

“I’ll have my time to grieve. But right now, my heart and mind tell me their parents are my main priority.”

The 2012 Olympic gold medallist was speaking before Monday’s news conference in London where he came face-to-face with Prenga for the first time.

Victory would clear the path for a long-awaited showdown against Tyson Fury later this year.

For more than a decade, Joshua and Fury have been the defining figures of British heavyweight boxing on the global stage, yet have never shared a ring.

An agreement is in place and both fighters are expected to earn career-high purses when they finally meet, with October or November the likely target dates.

But the fight will only materialise if Joshua takes care of business against Prenga. Fury, meanwhile, is also understood to be planning an interim bout, potentially in Dublin on 1 August against an opponent yet to be named.