UFC Pioneer Paul Varelans Placed on Ventilator Due to COVID-19

Early Ultimate Fighting Championship vet Paul
Varelans is currently engaged in the fight of his life.

Varelans first posted about his COVID-19 diagnosis on
Facebook on Dec. 12, writing, “So its [sic] official I am
COVID-19 positive. And feel like hell.”

The 6-foot-8 former UFC fighter struggled with the illness,

writing on Dec. 13, “Best way I can compare the feel of
COVID-19 in my experiance [sic] is it’s like fighting a guy who
specializes in kidney punches they never stop coming.” The next
day, he
wrote, “Now for food pangs I’d kill for candied salmon WTF.”
This was his last post, as he has since been hospitalized in
Atlanta due to the illness.

On Thursday night, UFC co-founder Art Davie posted about his former
fighter on Facebook,
announcing that Varelans’ condition has worsened greatly, as
Varelans has since been placed on a ventilator. This came shortly
after a friend of Varelans posted on Facebook
about the situation, while also stating that Varelans is currently
in a medically induced coma.

“Paul
Varelans…(The Polar Bear)…has been diagnosed with COVID-19,”
Davie wrote. “He’s on a ventilator and struggling. I urge everyone
in the MMA world, to say a quick prayer for Paul. God
speed…!!!”

Varelans has not set foot in a ring or cage in 22 years, with his
last appearance at a Rings Holland event in 1998. On that card,
“The Polar Bear” punched out Dick Vrij in
the headliner just 30 seconds into the second round. The super
heavyweight left the sport with a 9-9 record after just under three
memorable years. Varelans made his professional debut at UFC 6 in
July 1995, where he leveled Cal Worsham in
62 seconds with a downward elbow. In his second jaunt in the cage
just a short time later that night, David Abbott
knocked him out to eject him from the tournament.

Varelans returned less than two months later at UFC 7, and he
reached the finals by forcing Gerry Harris
to tap out to elbow strikes and then submitting Mark Hall with a
keylock – one of just five in promotional history – both in 67
seconds or less. He was again unsuccessful to win the tournament,
as Marco
Ruas recorded the first leg kick stoppage in UFC history when
he finished Varelans after over 13 minutes of combat. Over the
years, “The Polar Bear” squared off against many future greats in
the sport, including Ruas, Dan Severn,
Igor
Vovchanchyn and Mark Kerr.