AP Features, December 3rd, 2007
A mixed martial arts fighter has died about six weeks after he was injured in a sanctioned bout, a rare fatality for a combat sport that is growing in popularity.
Sam Vasquez, 35, of Houston, was injured at the Toyota Center on Oct. 20 and died in a hospice Friday. The Harris County Medical Examiner's Office confirmed Vasquez's death, but spokeswoman Stacey Mitchell said it could be several days before the official cause is determined.
Mixed martial-arts fighting, a free-for-all combination of judo, boxing, karate, Muay Thai, kickboxing, tae kwon do, jiujitsu and wrestling, has grown in popularity and attracted large pay-per-view television audiences.
To broaden its fan base, the sport has limited the violence, attracting new fans without alienating its original hard-core base.
Vasquez was hospitalized after he was knocked out in the third round of a fight at the Renegades Extreme Fighting show. He lost consciousness and suffered a seizure.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation, which sanctioned the fight, said it investigated the incident immediately after the fight. "To date, the evaluation shows that this event was conducted in compliance with all procedures," said a statement issued by executive director Bill Kuntz.
A mixed martial arts fan Web site said Vasquez was the first such fighter to die from an injury incurred or aggravated while competing in a regulated bout, though no official statistics were available. In 1998, American Doug Dedge died after being knocked out in an unregulated fight in the Ukraine.
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Associated Press Sports Writer Kristie Rieken contributed to this report.
