Heavyweight boxer, 27, dies

Heavyweight boxer Ardi Ndembo has died in hospital at the age of 27. He had spent over two weeks in an induced coma, which had occurred after he suffered a knockout at the hands of undefeated Cuban Nestor Santana.

Santana connected with a straight right hand that left Ndembo motionless on the canvas for several minutes. He was taken to hospital in Miami where he would later pass away. He leaves behind both his wife, who was flown in from Las Vegas, and his two children.

Ndembo had been taking part in Team Combat League (TCL), an offshoot of professional boxing where fighters compete in one-round fights for their respective teams. Fights between teams each last 24 rounds, with individual boxers each representing their team in one of these rounds. Founded by Ahmed Sheihk, it is described as an ‘evolution’ in the sport.

Jeff Mayweather, the uncle of Floyd Mayweather Jr, was present at the event. He said [via SunSport]: “Boxing’s a sport where you grow up watching it and loving it, but there’s so much risk involved. Anyone can lose their life from boxing. When something like this happens, it wakes up the whole entire world.

“You have just one round, you’re only doing one round and I’d think almost anyone can survive one round. But in the heavyweight division in Combat League, someone always gets hurt or stopped so I mean it’s the heavyweight division.

“I don’t think there’s anything you can do to change it because it’s boxing and it’s just one round. One round of trying to do the best you can to win that round. That kinda takes away the brutality that everyone thinks boxing’s about but a person getting knocked out or getting hurt in one round is very rare. Especially something that tragic.”