The death of Kimbo Slice shocked the fighting world on Monday night, causing an outpouring of grief at the surprising loss of the 42-year-old fighter. Slice, born Kevin Ferguson, was admitted to the hospital on June 3, according to ESPN, who cited a report by The Sun Sentinel and Northwest Medical Center related to the fighter complaining of “severe abdominal pain, shortness of breath and nausea:”
The report states Ferguson was placed on a ventilator in intensive care and was scheduled to be transported to Cleveland, where he would be placed on a donors list. Trauma and foul play are not suspected in the fighter’s death.
Slice’s manager Mike Imber spoke with ESPN on Tuesday and recalled the details surrounding Slice’s hospital visit and his sudden passing:
“He went to Germany around March and got really sick while he was there,” Imber said. “I don’t know what he thought it was, but he just felt sick. On Friday (June 3), he had bad chest pains and went to the hospital. I went and visited him on Friday and he seemed OK. I didn’t feel like I was going to lose my friend in two days, by any means. He seemed concerned, but he seemed all right.”I talked to him that Saturday and Sunday, and he was still in the hospital. I said, ‘something’s not right.’ On Monday, his wife called and told me he had stopped breathing.”
ESPN notes that Slice had tested positive for “anabolic steroids and an elevated testosterone ratio” following his fight with Dada 5000 in February, but no rulings on cause of death have been released yet.
(Via ESPN)
