27-year-old Congolese fighter Ardi Ndembo was declared dead after spending two weeks in a coma. The heavyweight boxer suffered a vicious knockout when he faced Nestor Santana at the Team Combat League on April 5 in Maimi.
After a few minutes into the match, Santana landed a strike that dropped Ndembo and left him unconscious for several minutes. He was promptly rushed to Miami Hospital and was put in an induced coma, which lasted for two weeks before his imminent demise. The father-of-two is a seasoned fighter who was just starting to make a name for himself. He had last his victory against Christain Larrando Garcia, before his fight against Santana. In honor of his memory, the fight that took his life will not be added to his record, leaving his professional boxing score at [[8-0-0].
Following his death, The combat sport Promotion released a statement. “We at Viva Promotions mourn the loss of Ardi Ndembo, a talented Congolese boxer who tragically passed away after a knockout in Team Combat League match on April 5.” He remained in an induced coma until his untimely death. “RIP Ardi Ndembo!” Jeff Mayweather- uncle of iconic boxer Floyd Mayweather- a member of the Las Vegas Hustle team that Ndembo represented in the Team Combat League, also made a few remarks to 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 boxing. When something like this happens, it wakes up the whole entire world. I dont think boxing’s a bad sport because you can die in any sport. You drive a race car at 200mph. If it slides, you’re going to die too. You can die in any sport, but boxing is a brutal sport.”
