Chris Leben is known for his many wars in the UFC over the years, but the retired star has revealed he’s now in a different kind of battle after being hospitalized due to Covid.
“So I’ve been in the hospital since Tuesday,” Leben wrote on Instagram. “I went in after a cough and shortness of breath I developed after Covid.
“I’m not one to bellyache to the world. But if you haven’t seen me at the gym or around that is why. And if you can shoot some positive vibes my way other than that I don’t really wanna say much until we know exactly what’s going on,”
The 41-year-old Leben first retired from the sport back in 2013 after suffering a four-fight losing streak in the UFC, but then appeared on the verge of a comeback via the Bellator promotion a couple of years later.
Those plans were shelved when a medical revealed that he had a potentially life-threatening abnormality in his heart, which seemed to end any hopes of him fighting again.
However, in 2018 he revealed that he’d been given the all-clear by doctors to resume his fighting career and he went on to fight in bareknuckle boxing, delivering a 3-1 record before calling time on his career in February of last year after a KO victory.
Leben’s current situation is concerning, though he may take heart from the fact that another legendary UFC brawler, Diego Sanchez was also hospitalized due to having a tough time with Covid a few months ago, but eventually managed to recover and is now looking to resume his own combat sports career.
