Anthony Johnson, a former UFC light-heavyweight title contender has passed away after his long struggle with an undisclosed illness.
Here is everything you need to know.
Anthony Johnson dies after a battle with a mysterious illness
Bellator MMA, a promoter of American mixed martial arts, stated to confirm the unfortunate news on Sunday.
The message read, ‘It is with great sadness we acknowledge the passing of Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson.’
Moreover, it continued, ‘The BELLATOR family is devastated by his untimely passing and we send our condolences to his family and friends during this difficult time.’
If you didn’t know, Johnson was scheduled to fight for the title of Bellator’s light-heavyweight last year in September. However, he was forced to pull out from the competition after complications in his health.
Regardless, it appears as if the star’s battle with the illness persisted over the past year.
Moreover, Johnson’s manager Ali Abdelaziz had asked fans to pray for the fighter last month.
He said, ‘Pray for Anthony. It’s not going well. He’s very strong, spiritually. But pray for him.’
Furthermore, Johnson himself took to Instagram to share an ominous post with his fans.
He wrote, ‘Really wish I could go into detail about how ill I truly am. Just know I need as many prayers as I can get and I’ll see you in 2022 God willing.’
The ex-fighter had 11 knockouts during his time in the UFC. He challenged for UFC’s light heavyweight title twice from 2007 to 2017 and lost both of them to Daniel Cormier.
Besides that, he went on to compete in three weight classes during his decade in the UFC. Thus, his name joined the list of the most powerful punchers the organization had ever witnessed.
UFC athletes mourn Anthony Johnson
Multiple stars from both UFC and WWE communities took to social media to pay respect to Anthony Johnson following his untimely death.
Daniel Cormier, a former professional mixed martial artist shared, ‘For a guy who struck fear in so many people’s hearts Anthony Johnson was a caring person. From random text to check-ins during loss. What a person he was, Rumble will be missed. Sometimes life doesn’t seem fair. Horrible news.’
Meanwhile, Michael Chiesa, an American MMA fighter tweeted, ‘RIP Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson. One of the most prolific KO artists our sport has ever seen. My prayers go out to his family and everyone affected by this tragedy.’