In a sad update to a previous story, South African boxer Simiso Buthelezi died at 24-years-old. Unfortunately, he is best remembered after a video of his final match went viral and featured him going unhurt during a boxing match for the WBF African Lightweight title only to end up punching the air in a corner.
South African Boxer Simiso Buthelezi Dead at 24 Following Frightening Final Fight
The scene left viewers and spectators confused, shocked, and saddened as while it seemed so sudden and random, everyone knew what was happening due to increased awareness of head trauma in sports. Boxing South Africa confirmed Simiso’s death early on June 8, 2022. The young boxer had passed away the night before in the hospital where he had been placed in an induced coma.
In the tenth round of action, Buthelezi looked poised to take the fight. He’d been using his opponent Mntungwa as target practice the whole fight. Then, after his opponent recovers from a spill through the ropes, Simiso turns to the corner and begins shadow-boxing. Seeing this, the referee ended the fight and grabbed the 24-year-old to keep him from harming himself.
Simiso would collapse in the ring and be rushed to a hospital that could handle neurological issues and injuries. It was found that the young pugilist had a prior brain injury and there was bleeding on the brain. The thing is, he had a very brief career of five fights and went undefeated in the first four matches. These fights were spaced out as well: a debut in 2019, one in 2020, two in 2021, and his final match from this year.
It seems like if he had any brain injury or head trauma, it would’ve been picked up before this bout. There is an ongoing investigation by Boxing South Africa into the death of Simiso Buthelezi.
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