MMA: Despite rumors of Kimo Leopoldo death, he is alive

Earlier in the day, I posted (along with a few MMA sites as well as the NY Daily News and the Sun, an UK newspaper) that Kimo was dead from a heart attack.

Apparently, Underground member OneManArmy aka Beau Taylor was trolling the UG as well as the MMA community with hjs post reporting Kimo's death. Word is Beau Taylor has been banned from the UG.

My sincerest apologies to Kimo and his loved ones over my errant post.

Cut and pasted from http://www.canada.com/sports

Early UFC star Kimo Leopoldo still alive, says attorney

By Dave Deibert, SP Online Editor, Saskatoon StarPhoenixJuly 21, 2009

Reports of the death of early UFC star Kimo Leopoldo appear to have been premature. Leopoldo’s attorney, Victor E. Hobbs, told Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports that “Kimo has surfaced and that’s all I know right now.”

He referred all questions to Leopoldo’s manager, Ron Kort. Kort’s voice mailbox was full and could not accept messages, said the Yahoo! report.

Leopoldo, who became an overnight mixed-martial-arts sensation following his appearance at UFC 3 in 1994, was reported dead Tuesday by numerous websites, including TMZ, the New York Daily News and Orange County Register.

Leopoldo, known simply as Kimo in the MMA world, debuted with Ultimate Fighting Championship at UFC 3 against UFC Hall of Famer Royce Gracie. That night, the 6-foot-3, 235-pounder entered the ring with a massive cross on his back and pushed Gracie — then, a two-time UFC tournament champion — to the point of exhaustion before eventually submitting. Gracie could not continue in the tournament, however, due to the damage from his match with Kimo.

Kimo fought four more times for UFC: a loss at UFC 8 in 1996 to Ken Shamrock; a loss to Tsuyoshi Kohsaka via decision at UFC 16 in 1997; a win over Tank Abbott at UFC 43 in 2003; and another loss to Shamrock at UFC 48 in 2004.

His career MMA record is 10-7-1.

In July 2006, Leopoldo was scheduled to fight ex-UFC heavyweight champ Bas Rutten but tested positive for steroids in the days leading up to the match. He had also tested positive for steroids following his UFC 48 match versus Shamrock.

Earlier this year, Leopoldo was charged with possession of a controlled substance in Long Beach, California.