MMA champion Grigory Ponomarev dies at the age of 31

Grigory Ponomarev was 31 years old and passed away suddenly due to the detachment of a blood clot. MMA heavyweight champion, a household name in Russia and Eastern Europe, Ponomarev had won the heavyweight title in AMC Fight Nights, one of the most followed organizations in the world of mixed martial arts.

Who was Grigory Ponomarev

Nicknamed "Grizzly" due to his imposing size, Ponomarev was born in Kemerovo, in southwestern Siberia, and lived in Moscow. According to what has been reconstructed, he had not suffered any symptoms before his death: the fighter would have been struck down by an embolism. Already in the past, the fighter had had health problems, as the Russian media reconstructed. In 2023 he had suffered a serious knee injury, collapsing during the fight against Mukhomad Vachaev after 35 seconds. Rupture of the cruciate and other ligaments, also resulting in compression of the artery. After leaving the octagon, Ponomarev, father of a small child, became a cosmetologist, without however ever announcing his retirement from Mixed Martial Arts.