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Tuesday, June 7, 2016
Kimbo Slice dead: Bellator MMA and former UFC fighter dies, aged 42
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MMA fighter Slice, real name Kevin Ferguson, was admitted to hospital in Coral Springs, Florida, with police reportedly asking his family for information after his admittance.
However, it was confirmed later on Monday night that the former UFC fighter had died. He is survived by his girlfriend and six children.
Kimbo Slice has passed away.
Kimbo Slice has died at the age of 42, TMZ confirmed Monday night.
The MMA fighter — whose real name is Kevin Ferguson — was hospitalized in Florida Monday for undisclosed health reasons. TMZ reported that he was in “dire” condition and that the situation did “not look good.”
The CEO of Bellator MMA also confirmed the news.
“We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family,” he said in a statement Monday night. “One of the most popular MMA fighters ever, Kimbo was a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that transcended the sport.”
(Photo: Richard Wolowicz/Getty Images)
The CEO of Bellator MMA also confirmed the news.
“We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family,” he said in a statement Monday night. “One of the most popular MMA fighters ever, Kimbo was a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that transcended the sport.”
Kimbo Slice dead at 42
Popular mixed martial arts fighter Kevin "Kimbo Slice" Ferguson has died. He was 42.
Slice was stricken at his South
Florida home and taken Monday afternoon to the Northwest Medical Center
in Fort Lauderdale, a spokeswoman for the Coral Springs, Fla., Police
told Yahoo Sports on Monday. He later died.
Bellator president Scott Coker confirmed Slice's death in a statement:
"We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating and untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family. One of the most popular MMA fighters ever, Kimbo was a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that trancended the sport."
"Outside the cage, he was a friendly, gentle giant and a devoted family man. His loss leaves us all with extremely heavy hearts, and our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Ferguson family and all of Kimbo's friends, fans, and teammates."
Sgt. Carla Kmiotek of the Coral
Springs police told Yahoo Sports no foul play is suspected. She said the
department dispatched a team of officers to Slice's home because he is a
public figure in order to control whatever crowd might gather.
"At 8 p.m. (ET) we received a
call from TMZ," Kmiotek said. "Our communications department confirmed
with Northwest Medical that he is there. We did not receive a police or
EMS call from the residence. There is no foul play suspected and there
is no investigation. It is being handled as a medical incident.
Slice burst into prominence a little more than a decade ago, when
videos of his infamous street fights were viewed millions of times on
YouTube. He initially signed with Elite XC and drew huge ratings for his
fights on CBS.In 2009, he signed a deal with the UFC to appear on Season 10 of "The Ultimate Fighter." He was eliminated by Roy Nelson in the opening round, but appeared on the season finale and defeated Houston Alexander. He fought once more in the UFC and was knocked out in the second round of UFC 113 by Matt Mitrione.
Slice fought his last two fights in Bellator and drew huge television ratings for each. He defeated Ken Shamrock at Bellator 138 on June 19, 2015, and Dhafir Harris, aka Dada 5000 at Bellator 149 on Feb. 19. However, Slice tested positive for an anabolic steroid following that fight and the victory was turned to a no contest.
He had been scheduled to rematch
James Thompson at Bellator 158 in London on July 16. Slice was 5-2-1 as
a professional mixed martial artist. He also had seven pro boxing
matches and was 7-0 with six knockouts.
Kimbo Slice Hospitalized In Florida ... Dire Situation
EXCLUSIVE
MMA fighter Kimbo Slice was hospitalized in Florida earlier Monday ... and multiple sources tell TMZ Sports the situation does not look good.Law enforcement sources tell us ... Slice was admitted to a hospital near his home in Coral Springs, FL.
Police are currently at his home gathering information from family members.
Kimbo -- real name Kevin Ferguson -- last fought at Bellator 149 back in February and defeated Dada 5000 -- but the victory was overturned when Slice tested positive for a banned steroid.
Back in 2003, Slice became an Internet sensation for his backyard fighting videos -- destroying several opponents in unsanctioned street fights. He later signed a deal to fight in the UFC.
Story developing ...
Kimbo Slice dies at age 42
Professional mixed martial artist Kimbo Slice died Monday at age 42, Bellator MMA announced.
"We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating and untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family," Bellator president Scott Coker said in a statement, calling Slice "a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that transcended the sport."
"Outside of the cage he was a friendly, gentle giant and a devoted family man," Coker said. "His loss leaves us all with extremely heavy hearts, and our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Ferguson family and all of Kimbo's friends, fans, and teammates."
There was no word on the cause of Slice's death.
Slice had been hospitalized earlier Monday in Margate, Florida, for undisclosed reasons, according to Coral Springs police, who had been dispatched to his residence to prevent a potential gathering outside. They said no foul play was suspected.
"We lost our brother today," Slice's longtime manager, Mike Imber, said in a text message to The Associated Press.
Slice, birth name Kevin Ferguson, was a former backyard brawler and Internet sensation. A heavyweight at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, he had a 5-2 professional record with four TKOs.
He was signed to Bellator MMA and scheduled to headline Bellator 158 on July 16 in London against James Thompson.
He last fought at Bellator 149 on Feb. 19 in Houston. He defeated Dhafir Harris, aka Dada5000, in a three-round decision. The result was later changed to a no-contest by the Texas commission, after Slice tested positive for anabolic steroids and an elevated testosterone ratio.
Slice also previously fought for the UFC.
"He carried himself as a true professional during his time in our organization," the promotion said in a statement Monday night. "While he will never be forgotten for his fighting style and transcendent image, Slice will also be remembered for his warm personality and commitment to his family and friends."
Slice was born in the Bahamas on Feb. 8, 1974, but grew up in South Florida. He played middle linebacker at Miami's Palmetto High and showed the potential to play in college before Hurricane Andrew caused Palmetto High's season to be cut short and his scholarship offers vanished. He flunked out of college at Bethune-Cookman University and was homeless for a brief time. He worked as a limo driver, strip-club bouncer and bodyguard before rising to fame through his viral street-fighting videos.
He was not embraced by much of the MMA world as it attempted to go mainstream, with UFC president Dana White famously saying Slice would not last two minutes in the Octagon. However, due in part to his immense popularity, Slice's third professional fight, a fourth-round TKO against Thompson in May 2008, aired on CBS, making it the first MMA fight on prime-time network television.
In 2009, the UFC booked Slice as a contestant on "The Ultimate Fighter" reality series. He ultimately fought for the UFC twice, compiling a 1-1 record, before taking a leave of absence from MMA to compete in professional wrestling.
In 2015, Bellator signed Slice and promoted him in a main event against MMA pioneer Ken Shamrock. Slice won the fight via TKO in the first round, after nearly being submitted by Shamrock in the opening minutes.
Shamrock tweeted about Slice's death Monday night.
The two Bellator events Slice competed in, Bellator 138 and Bellator 149, set new ratings records on Spike TV.
Slice made his professional MMA debut on Nov. 10, 2007, for the now-defunct promotion EliteXC, knocking out Bo Cantrell in just 19 seconds.
He trained out of American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida. The team also mourned his passing on Twitter.
For all of his glowering in-cage swagger and outsized fame, Slice was extraordinarily honest about his fighting abilities. He acknowledged being an MMA newcomer with much to learn, never claiming to be anything but a big puncher providing for his family while constantly working to learn the sport's other disciplines.
"The guys who are holding the titles, heavyweight and light heavyweight, these guys are awesome," Slice told the AP in a 2010 interview before his second UFC fight. "I'm really just having happy days in the midst -- being among them, fighting on the undercards, just contributing to the UFC and the sport. That's really what I want to do. I'm not looking ahead to winning a title or anything like that. I'm just enjoying each fight as it comes."
Slice is survived by six children, and he credited his MMA career for allowing him to send them to college. One of his three sons, Kevin Ferguson Jr., made his MMA debut in March.
"We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating and untimely loss of Kimbo Slice, a beloved member of the Bellator family," Bellator president Scott Coker said in a statement, calling Slice "a charismatic, larger-than-life personality that transcended the sport."
"Outside of the cage he was a friendly, gentle giant and a devoted family man," Coker said. "His loss leaves us all with extremely heavy hearts, and our thoughts and prayers are with the entire Ferguson family and all of Kimbo's friends, fans, and teammates."
There was no word on the cause of Slice's death.
Slice had been hospitalized earlier Monday in Margate, Florida, for undisclosed reasons, according to Coral Springs police, who had been dispatched to his residence to prevent a potential gathering outside. They said no foul play was suspected.
"We lost our brother today," Slice's longtime manager, Mike Imber, said in a text message to The Associated Press.
Slice, birth name Kevin Ferguson, was a former backyard brawler and Internet sensation. A heavyweight at 6-foot-2, 225 pounds, he had a 5-2 professional record with four TKOs.
He was signed to Bellator MMA and scheduled to headline Bellator 158 on July 16 in London against James Thompson.
He last fought at Bellator 149 on Feb. 19 in Houston. He defeated Dhafir Harris, aka Dada5000, in a three-round decision. The result was later changed to a no-contest by the Texas commission, after Slice tested positive for anabolic steroids and an elevated testosterone ratio.
Slice also previously fought for the UFC.
"He carried himself as a true professional during his time in our organization," the promotion said in a statement Monday night. "While he will never be forgotten for his fighting style and transcendent image, Slice will also be remembered for his warm personality and commitment to his family and friends."
Slice was born in the Bahamas on Feb. 8, 1974, but grew up in South Florida. He played middle linebacker at Miami's Palmetto High and showed the potential to play in college before Hurricane Andrew caused Palmetto High's season to be cut short and his scholarship offers vanished. He flunked out of college at Bethune-Cookman University and was homeless for a brief time. He worked as a limo driver, strip-club bouncer and bodyguard before rising to fame through his viral street-fighting videos.
He was not embraced by much of the MMA world as it attempted to go mainstream, with UFC president Dana White famously saying Slice would not last two minutes in the Octagon. However, due in part to his immense popularity, Slice's third professional fight, a fourth-round TKO against Thompson in May 2008, aired on CBS, making it the first MMA fight on prime-time network television.
In 2009, the UFC booked Slice as a contestant on "The Ultimate Fighter" reality series. He ultimately fought for the UFC twice, compiling a 1-1 record, before taking a leave of absence from MMA to compete in professional wrestling.
In 2015, Bellator signed Slice and promoted him in a main event against MMA pioneer Ken Shamrock. Slice won the fight via TKO in the first round, after nearly being submitted by Shamrock in the opening minutes.
Shamrock tweeted about Slice's death Monday night.
The two Bellator events Slice competed in, Bellator 138 and Bellator 149, set new ratings records on Spike TV.
Slice made his professional MMA debut on Nov. 10, 2007, for the now-defunct promotion EliteXC, knocking out Bo Cantrell in just 19 seconds.
He trained out of American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida. The team also mourned his passing on Twitter.
For all of his glowering in-cage swagger and outsized fame, Slice was extraordinarily honest about his fighting abilities. He acknowledged being an MMA newcomer with much to learn, never claiming to be anything but a big puncher providing for his family while constantly working to learn the sport's other disciplines.
"The guys who are holding the titles, heavyweight and light heavyweight, these guys are awesome," Slice told the AP in a 2010 interview before his second UFC fight. "I'm really just having happy days in the midst -- being among them, fighting on the undercards, just contributing to the UFC and the sport. That's really what I want to do. I'm not looking ahead to winning a title or anything like that. I'm just enjoying each fight as it comes."
Slice is survived by six children, and he credited his MMA career for allowing him to send them to college. One of his three sons, Kevin Ferguson Jr., made his MMA debut in March.
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