On Tuesday, November 13, Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson passed away. The MMA community is now mourning the loss.
News of the 38-year-old’s death marked a sad day for MMA fans. Johnson was known to be battling a serious illness, but the details remained limited during his recovery.
Once his passing was officially announced, fans and fighters were in shock. Daniel Cormier, who faced Johnson twice in the UFC, wrote:
“Rest Easy my brother. For a guy who struck fear in so many peoples heart Anthony Johnson was a caring person. From random text to check ins during loss. What a person he was, Rumble will be missed. Sometimes life doesn’t seem fair. Horrible news #RIP #Rumblesquad @Anthony_Rumble”
Welterweight veteran Michael Chiesa posted:
“RIP Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson. One of the most prolific KO artists our sport has ever seen. My prayers go out to his family and everyone affected by this tragedy.”
“RIP Anthony Johnson. Such an incredible talent. Gone way too soon. Thanks for all the amazing fights.”
“Anthony Johnson was Francis Ngannou before Francis Ngannou. Truly the craziest one punch power we may have ever seen. Dammit the memories he gave us man.”
Renowned MMA referee Marc Goddard also commented:
“RIP Anthony Johnson. Tragic.”
UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling also paid tribute, writing:
“Sad day for the MMA world. Still setting in for me that we lost another really good person. RIP Anthony Johnson”
“RIP to Anthony Johnson. What a fighter he was, a true champion who had a truly positive impact on MMA.”
Former UFC lightweight king Charles Oliveira wrote:
“Rest in Peace Anthony Johnson Descanse em paz Anthony Johnson”
Johnson updated fans in September 2021 about the severity of his illness. Concern began to grow after his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, asked for prayers two weeks ago in an interview with Brett Okamoto.
Despite Abdelaziz’s update, the MMA community was not expecting such a devastating outcome so soon.
Kevin Iole of Yahoo! Sports was the first to report the specific details of Anthony Johnson’s passing. Noting the cause of death, Iole’s report stated:
“The cause of death was organ failure due to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis, which is a rare disorder of the immune system.”
What did Dana White have to say about former UFC fighter Anthony Johnson who just passed away?
Dana White, along with the millions in the MMA community, mourned the untimely passing of former UFC and Bellator fighter Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson. The UFC president shared a picture of ‘Rumble’ on his Instagram stories with the title: ‘RIP Anthony Johnson’.
In an article by Kevin Ioli, White said the following in the aftermath of Johnson passing away:
“He was always a great kid. He was always in fun fights and he had that one-punch KO power that not many people ever had. He was a good human being. I send my condolences to his family.”
Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson died on November 13, 2022, as a result of organ failure due to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma and hemophagocytic lymphohistiocytosis – a rare immune system disorder. The former welterweight and light heavyweight fighter had been battling the illness privately for over a year.
On November 14, the UFC put out a tribute to the late fighter on its official Twitter handle.
Kamaru Usman likens Anthony Johnson’s situation to the late Chadwick Boseman’s
Anthony Johnson was one of former welterweight champ Kamaru Usman’s closest friends. The two were former teammates at the now-defunct ‘Blackzilians’, along with UFC Hall of Famer Rashad Evans and Michael Johnson.
According to Kevin Ioli, Usman said that the way Johnson handled his illness was very similar to how Chadwick Boseman did, where no one (except close aids of the actor) knew Boseman was sick until he passed away in 2020. The former champ said the following about the late Anthony Johnson:
“You know, it was a little like [the late actor] Chadwick Boseman. Chadwick kept his issue private and we were all so shocked and surprised [when he died in 2020]. Rumble would give you these nonchalant stories, and he was having dialysis on his kidneys. He didn’t want to be treated differently.”
Chadwick Boseman played the titular character in the 2018 film ‘Black Panther’. The late actor was diagnosed with stage III colon cancer in 2016 and continued acting until his death in 2020. His death came as a shock to fans and members of the film community as he had kept his illness concealed.
The former welterweight champion Kamaru Usman had a minor role in the sequel, ‘Black Panther: Wakanda Forever’.
Remembering Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson
Anthony ‘Rumble’ Johnson had various unforgettable moments, including his 13-second knockout against Glover Teixeira.
The two-time UFC title challenger has wins over Dan Hardy, Andrei Arlovski, Phil Davis, Antonio Rogerio Nogueira, Alexander Gustafsson, and Ryan Bader. He last fought in a second-round knockout against Jose Augusto Azevedo in May 2021 in what was his Bellator debut.
Johnson will always be known for his vicious power and ability to shut the lights out on anyone at anytime.
He ended his UFC career with a 13-6 record. He initially retired following his failed title challenge in 2017, but returned under the Bellator banner, where he was scheduled to challenge for the light heavyweight gold last October prior to the discovery of his condition.