Josh Samman has passed away, aged just 28.
The UFC fighter was found unresponsive in an apartment in Florida on Friday and has since been in a coma until he was declared dead in the hospital on Wednesday.
His manager Gary Ibarra confirmed the tragic news to FOX Sports.
Samman, a middleweight with a 12-5-0 record in the UFC, was discovered with announcer Troy Kirkingburg who was pronounced dead at the scene but it remains unclear how the pair passed away.
What isn’t in any doubt is the awful hole that his passing leaves. Samman was an affable character full of life and he took that energy and that fearlessness that he had into every bout, twice winning a UFC performance of the night bonus.
Found an old friend in Texas. @UriahHallMMA @ufc #ufchidalgo #tuf17 pic.twitter.com/PSzxsLHyTp
— Josh Samman (@JoshSamman) September 18, 2016
He already had one of the most crushing stories when his childhood sweetheart died in a car crash in 2013 whilst they were both texting one another.
After she passed, Samman, a native of Florida, spoke beautifully about his girlfriend:
“People say you don’t know what you have until it’s gone, but I knew. I knew what I had when I had it.”
And the MMA world knew what they had when they had Samman. His passing has hit the community hard and tributes have piled in for the Ultimate Fighter 17 legend.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BLLtMkRhxS5/?taken-by=gjsvictorymma
RIP Josh Samman. You were a smart, vibrant, intelligent dude. You'll be missed. Condolences to all those effected.
— Jed Meshew II (@JedKMeshew) October 5, 2016
https://twitter.com/KidNate/status/783702335771910145
https://twitter.com/Itzxnate/status/783701843788476416
RIP Josh Samman; his head-kick victory at UFC 181 will live long in the memory
@BrianStann just told me Josh often donated to @HireHeroesUSA— Jønathan Shrager (@JonathanShrager) October 5, 2016
Hard to go about my day with the passing of @JoshSamman. 2morrow is never promised. So today I will live and celebrate life #rip brother.
— #OnAmission4Gold (@KelvinGastelum) October 5, 2016
Josh Samman's passing is a tragedy for the MMA community. Reminder: a person's deeds and character are NOT erased by addiction struggles.
— Scott Harris (@ScottHarrisMMA) October 5, 2016
Heartbreaking news to hear Josh Samman has passed away. Heart breaking news.
— Michael Allardyce (@mikedyce) October 5, 2016
https://twitter.com/Patrick_Wyman/status/783694462149025792
Rest in peace, Josh.
