Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Conor McGregor has paid tribute to the Portuguese mixed martial arts fighter João Carvalho, who died following a Total Extreme Fighting event in Dublin at the weekend.
Carvalho fell ill 20 minutes after being beaten in a technical knockout by Charlie Ward, a team-mate of McGregor. He was attended to by on-site medical staff and later underwent emergency brain surgery at the Beaumont hospital, but the 28-year-old succumbed to his injuries on Monday night.
Writing on Facebook, McGregor called Carvalho “a hell of a fighter”, adding: “To see a young man doing what he loves, competing for a chance at a better life, and then to have it taken away is truly heartbreaking.
“We are just men and women doing something we love in the hope of a better life for ourselves and our families. Nobody involved in combat sports of any kind wants to see this. It is such a rare occurrence that I don’t know how to take this. I was ringside supporting my team-mate, and the fight was so back and forth, that I just can’t understand it.
“Combat sport is a crazy game and with the recent incident in boxing [involving Nick Blackwell] and now this in MMA, it is a sad time to be a fighter and a fight fan.
“It is easy for those on the outside to criticise our way of living, but for the millions of people around the world who have had their lives, their health, their fitness and their mental strength all changed for the better through combat, this is truly a bitter pill to swallow. We have lost one of us.
“I hope we remember João as a champion, who pursued his dream doing what he loved, and show him the eternal respect and admiration he deserves.”
Cesar Silva, the CEO of Total Extreme Fighting, said after the news of Carvalho’s death was announced: “We extend our most sincere condolences to the family of João Carvalho and his team-mates in Team Nobrega. Our thoughts and prayers are with them. We’d also like to thank all sports fans for their concern and support. We will give whatever support we can to João’s family.”
