Kimbo Slice Passes Away At 42

By Raj Giri

Kimbo Slice passed away in a Florida hospital tonight at the age of 42, apparently due to heart failure.

TMZ Sports first reported earlier today that Kimbo was hospitalized in Coral Springs, Florida and that the situation didn't look good. He passed away shortly after.

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Bellator CEO issued the following statement to TMZ:

"We are all shocked and saddened by the devastating 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 transcended the sport.

Outside of 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."

Kimbo was slated to fight James Thompson at Bellator 158 on July 16, in a rematch from their infamous fight in 2008 that saw Thompson's cauliflower ear explode. Slice won the fight via TKO in the third round in what is one of the most watched fights in U.S. MMA history.

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Kimbo last fought this past February, defeating Dhafir "Dada 5000" Harris via knockout in the third round. Harris' heart stopped and he technically died during the fight, and he was hospitalized for a week. Slice failed a drug test for nandralone and elevated testosterone levels, and the fight was overturned to a no-contest.

Kimbo training camp, American Top Team in Coconut Creek, FL, posted the following regarding Kimbo's passing:

On a personal note, I had met Kimbo many times backstage at MMA events during my Fightline days. He was always really cool to me and was great to talk to. In the photo below, at one show my wife kept trying to get a serious pic of him for the site, but then he'd make a crazy face right as she snapped it. #RIPKimbo

Source: TMZ Sports

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