MMA fans are mourning the loss of long-time veteran of the sport Benji Radach after he passed away at just 45-years-old.
Family members of Radach announced the news on social media, but his cause of death is unknown at this time.
Radach was a notable name in the MMA world over the years due to having fought for many leading organizations, including stints in UFC, WEC, Strikeforce, Bellator, Elite XC and IFL.
Radach joined the UFC with a 10-0 record back in 2002 and went 1-1 (+1nc), including picking up a decision win over Matt Serra’s brother Nick, a no-contest against Steve Berger (which Radach initially won by TKO before being penalized for a fence grab) and then a TKO loss to Sean Sherk due to a cut, which led to his exit from the Octagon.
He would later go on to have a 4-1 stint in the IFL promotion, which would culminate in an unsuccessful title fight against Matt Horwich in 2007.
After earning a TKO win over ‘Shogun’s’ brother Murilo Rua at Elite XC: Heat the following year, Radich went on to suffer a couple of losses in the Strikeforce promotion, before re-emerging in 2015 for one final fight in the Bellator promotion, leaving him with an overall 21-7 career record.
Radach also hit the headlines in 2006 when he single-handedly stopped an armed robbery attempt while dining at a restaurant in Vancouver, Washington, managing to get the gun-wielding assailant to the ground with a wrist-lock before breaking his jaw with a single punch.
