Promising teenage boxer Ali Tazeem - who has been compared to former world champion Amir Khan - has died in a car accident at the age of 18.
Tazeem, who signed professional terms with promoter Probellum last month, was involved in a fatal accident in Birmingham this weekend. It is understood a car and a bus collided at a junction and three other passengers were taken to hospital with serious injuries.
Probellum's Sam Jones, who previously managed heavyweight contender Joe Joyce, confirmed the news when he tweeted: "This morning I woke up to the news that Ali Tazeem has passed away at the age of 18. I can’t believe it I can’t even process it properly. We only spoke yesterday talking about how he was going to light up the pro game, all I can think about is Ali and his lovely family."
Tazeem won 15 gold medals from just 51 bouts as an amateur and suffered just six defeats. And two years ago, Khan himself said he reminded him of himself at a young age. "I definitely think he is the next big thing for sure," he said. “I mean, the skillset he has, the movement, everything really reminds me of myself when I was younger and how I used to fight. I think he has got everything it takes to succeed."
Tazeem had expressed his excitement at signing his professional terms just four days ago when he said on social media: "I made a lots of moves in the ring but the best move in my career is signing with Probellum. With hard work and dedication I know I can be the best in the business, especially with the support of Sam Jones, my team and great people around me."
He had earlier announced his signing by saying: "My amateur journey has been great and I look forward to my pro career with Probellum. Couldn’t have done it without your support! See you all at my pro debut."
