Two-time UFC light heavyweight title challenger Anthony
Johnson has died at 38 years old.
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Numerous figures in the MMA community mourned the news on social
media on Sunday, and his passing has since been confirmed by
multiple outlets. The cause of Johnson’s death is unknown. He was
38 years old.
Known as “Rumble,” Johnson made a name for himself across two UFC
stints thanks in large part to his frightening knockout power. He
twice challenged for 205-pound gold, falling to Daniel
Cormier at UFC 187 and again in their rematch at UFC 210. He
announced his retirement after the second defeat in April 2017 and
didn’t return until May 2021, when he defeated
Jose Augusto Azevedo Barros via second-round KO at Bellator
258.
Johnson was slated to face Vadim
Nemkov in the semifinals of the Bellator light heavyweight
grand prix last year, but he was
forced to withdraw from the tournament due to an undisclosed
illness.
“Really wish I could go into detail about how ill I truly am,”
Johnson wrote on Instagram at the time. “Just know I need as many
prayers as I can get and I’ll see you in 2022 God willing… Never
been this afraid of anything in my life but I’ve remained strong
with the support of friends and family.”
Bellator MMA released a statement regarding Johnson’s death on
Sunday.
“It is with great sadness we acknowledge the passing of Anthony
“Rumble” Johnson,” it read.
“The Bellator family is devastated by his untimely passing and we
send our condolences to his family and friends during this
difficult time.”
🙏 It is with great sadness we acknowledge
the passing of Anthony “Rumble” Johnson.The BELLATOR family is devastated by his untimely passing and we
send our condolences to his family and friends during this
difficult time. pic.twitter.com/TqZzN1wquY— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA)
November 13, 2022
Johnson went 23-6 over the course of an MMA career that began in
2006. His record includes wins over the likes of Glover
Teixeira, Ryan Bader,
Phil
Davis, Alexander
Gustafsson, Antonio
Rogerio
Nogueira, Andrei
Arlovski, David
Branch and Dan Hardy,
among others.