Ontario Man Killed In Unregulated MMA Fight

[HuffingtonPost]

A 35-year-old Hamilton man died after an unregulated mixed martial arts (MMA) match in Michigan on Saturday.

Felix Nchikwo, who fights under the name Felix Pablo Elochukwu, died in hospital after participating in an Amateur Fighting Club (AFC) bout in Port Huron, Mich., just across the St. Clair River from Sarnia, Ont.

The Nigerian-born fighter lasted three rounds in the ring. Officials stopped the fight when Nchikwo showed signs he was having difficulty defending himself.

"He just had an MMA fight and he got a little exhausted and the fight was stopped," said Rick Joslin, founder of Joslin's Martial Arts, the gym where Nchikwo trained.

"He was perfectly alright. He just got tired at the end, got a little dizzy. They gave him some juice and then he collapsed forward. Now they're doing an autopsy to see if he had a heart attack or whatever."

"A very, very nice fellow," Joslin said of the fighter. "Very quiet, but he was a big boy and I think maybe the over-exertion from the fight was a little too much for him at that time."

"We lost a member of our MMA family and we would like to take this time to honour him," the AFC said in a statement posted to its Facebook page.

"This is a tragic turn of events. We will keep his family and friends in our prayers and we ask you to do the same. May God be with them in this devastating time of loss."

Nchikwa's death occurred just days before Michigan's state legislature was set to vote on legislation to regulate amateur MMA. Representatives are schedule to vote Wednesday on two bills that would create an advisory commission to oversee the sport and require promoters to obtain licences to hold bouts.

AFC founder Aron Anglebrandt said he "cannot wait" for the state to regulate amateur MMA.

"We welcome it because all of these small-time shows, they put on shows that don't have insurance, they don't have the proper [paramedics] and they don't have the proper number of referees."

"They won't be able to withstand the amount of money it's going to take to put on a show, while we're going to be able to."

The St. Clair County Medical County medical examiner has performed an autopsy, but has not released the final results. However, the coroner's office told CBC News there was "no evidence [Nchikwo] died from any traumatic injury resulting from the fight."

A full report is expected in six to eight weeks.

Via: HuffingtonPost

[Folami David]

What a very sad news to read this early morning. May his soul rest in peace. Too bad this had to happen to him suddenly