Ardi Ndembo died after being hospitalized in a Miami hospital for three weeks. He had suffered a brutal knockout against Mario Santana, within the framework of the Team Combat League event, which faced the Las Vegas Hustle and Miami Assassins teams.
The young man, 27 years old, was originally from Brazzaville (Republic of the Congo) but lived in South Africa and had been in the United States for a few months.
On April 5, he entered the ring to face the Cuban Toro Santana. But that fight lasted less than a minute: The African fell to the canvas and did not get up again.
Santana managed to land several blows to the face and it was a impact with the left fist which sent Ndembo to the ground. The health authorities raised his legs and placed him on his side, until the transmission stopped showing what happened.
The first reports from Miami’s El Nuevo Herald indicated that he had been rushed to Jackson Memorial Hospital “in very bad condition.”
There he underwent emergency surgery to “relieve pressure on your brain” and then it was “in induced coma“.
“Ndembo lost consciousness on the way to the hospital and at this moment he is assisted with an artificial respirator to be able to stabilize his condition, which was reported to be critical,” they said in those first hours after the knockout.
Throughout this period, the organization collected money to help his family.
But after spending more than 20 days hospitalized, it was reported that Ndembo had died.
“We at Viva Promotions mourn the loss of Ardi Ndembo, a talented Congolese boxer who tragically passed away after a knockout in a Team Fight League match on April 5. He remained in an induced coma until his premature death. RIP Ardi Ndembo! “Wrote the gym where he trained on social networks.
The organization of this contest also referred to what happened: “The boxing community mourns the loss of Ardi Ndembo. Originally from Brazzaville, Congo, Ardi Ndembo was a 27-year-old father of two children. Please take a moment to send his strength, prayers and support to the Ndembo family at this difficult time.”
Official statistics indicated that Ardi had previously recorded eight fights as a professional, all with victories and seven of them through the fast track. After having presentations on his continent, he arrived in North America where he held two fights in Mexico in the first months of 2024.
