A 27-year-old heavyweight boxer died Thursday, three weeks after he suffered a vicious knockout loss that led to him being put in an induced coma in Miami.
Ardi Ndembo, who was a perfect 8-0 in his career, was brutally knocked out by his opponent, Nestor Santana, while competing in a Team Combat League fight on April 5 and was left unconscious in the ring for several minutes.
The father of two was placed in an induced coma in a Miami hospital and succumbed to the injuries on Thursday.
The promotion paid tribute to Ndembo in a post on X.
“We at Viva Promotions mourn the loss of Ardi Ndembo, a talented Congolese boxer who tragically passed away after a knockout in a Team Combat League match on April 5,” the promotion said in a statement. “He remained in an induced coma until his untimely death. RIP Ardi Ndembo!”
Floyd Mayweather Jr.’s uncle, Jeff, was part of the Las Vegas Hustle team Ndembo represented in the Team Combat League and was ringside for the bout.
He spoke to The Sun about the terrible situation.
“Boxing’s a sport where you grow up watching it and loving it, but there’s so much risk involved,” Jeff Mayweather said. “Anyone can lose their life from boxing. When something like this happens, it wakes up the whole entire world.
“I don’t 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.”
in an induced comma. Instagram/ardindembo
WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman also paid tribute to the Congolese fighter.
‘May he rest in peace,” he wrote on X. “Ardi Ndembo has passed away in Miami. Our condolences go to his family.”
Ndembo’s wife flew from Las Vegas to be by her husband’s side, according to the Daily Mail.
A GoFundMe page has been set up to help support Ndembo’s family and has raised more than $11,000 as of Saturday.
Team Combat Leauge, which gave him a 10-bell salute, will match donations up to $25,000, the page says.
