Mateus Fernandes, amateur fighter dies after TKO loss, coroner rules alleged overdose
Mateus Fernandes, 22, an amateur mixed martial artist, passed away just hours after competing in Brazil on Saturday night.
Fernandes competed in the first bout of the night at Remulus Fight in Manaus, March 30, losing by way of third-round TKO. Obed Pereira dropped Fernandes with a serious of shots before hitting the fighter with another shot on the ground and before the referee could call an end to the contest.
You can watch the ending to the contest in the video above.
Project coordinator Vanderluce Cantuarias, wife of coach Valmir Dieb, told MMA Fighting that the coroner’s report showed that Fernandes’ death was caused by an alleged overdose, not by the damage sustained in the fight.
“He did exams on Friday and was clean, but ex-students told us later that he spent the night using drugs,” Cantuarias said. “He didn’t appear to have used anything. He was sweating a lot, but that is common, the adrenaline of the fight. He did great in the first couple of rounds but was rocked in the third round and went down, and then he started having seizures caused by the drugs.”
Fernandes was taken to a local hospital and suffered multiple heart attacks, dying at 11:45 p.m. local time, CAMMA president Wallace Alves told MMA Fighting.
“I’m feeling numb right now, really upset,” Alves said. “He was rushed to the hospital and had his eyes open the entire time. He was dizzy, but still awake. He was examined in the hospital and then suffered the first heart failure. They tried to save him for two hours, but he ended up dying.”
Per CAMMA rules, amateur bouts have three-minute rounds and elbows and knees are illegal. Alves said that the commission only required blood exams to tests for HIV and hepatitis for pre-fight medical clearance. Fernandes did not have his heart and brain checked prior to the event, Alves said.
