Ex-UFC fighter, 40, dies in late-night stabbing
Former UFC fighter Maiquel Falcao was discovered with three serious stab wounds at 3am local time on Sunday morning outside of a bar in his hometown of Pelotas, a city in the south of Brazil which is around 80 miles from the Uruguayan border.
He was rushed to a nearby hospital but did not survive his injuries, according to GZH.
The Homicide and Personal Protection Police Station authority has launched an investigation into the incident.
Falcao appeared once for the UFC, beating Gerald Harris by unanimous decision at UFC 123 in Michigan in November 2010.
He was subsequently released by the organization after reports emerged that he had previously been arrested for an alleged assault of a woman outside of a nightclub.
'Big Rig' inked a deal with Bellator MMA two years later and was victorious in the promotion's middleweight tournament in May 2012 – a victory which earned him a shot at then-Bellator 185lbs champion Alexander Shlemenko, losing to the Russian fighter by second-round knockout.
He was later axed from the Bellator roster amid reports that he assaulted a woman and had become involved in a street fight.
Falcao would become something of a mixed martial arts journeyman in his latter career, fighting in countries including Serbia, India, Uzbekistan, Argentina and the Czech Republic, winning just five of his last 17 fights.
His final bout came in Sochi, Russia in December 2019, when he was submitted by Sergey Romanov.
His career did, however, see him gain credible wins against fighters such as Igor Pokrajac, Jesse Taylor and Norman Paraisy.
