UFC in shock as fighter dies aged 34

The mixed martial arts world is in mourning after the passing was announced of former UFC fighter Elias Theodorou, who has died following a battle with liver cancer. He was 34.

The news of his death has been confirmed by several sources after reports first appeared on social media in recent hours. It is understood that Theodorou had been suffering from stage four liver cancer.

Theodorou was a former winner of the UFC's popular reality series 'The Ultimate Fighter' and fought 11 times for the organization between 2014 and 2019, winning eights fights and losing just three.

The Ontario, Canada native scored wins against the likes of Eryk Anders, Cezar Ferreira and Sam Alvey during his UFC stint and only lost to upper echelon competition such as Thiago Santos, Brad Tavares and Derek Brunson. 

He was released from the UFC following a May 2019 loss to Brunson after which UFC president Dana White stated that he didn't believe that Theodorou would ever break the top-five rankings at middleweight. 

Theodorou responded by knocking out his next two opponents.

He posted an overall record of 19-3 and was never knocked out or submitted in his fight career. His most recent fight took place last December where he defeated former Bellator standout Bryan Baker by unanimous decision in what proved to be his final career bout. 

Theodorou was also noted for being a vocal advocate of the use of medicinal cannabis and in January 2020 he became the first fighter to be issued with a TUE (therapeutic use exemption) which was granted to him by the British Columbia Athletic Commission.

He also gained notoriety online after he became involved with the all-female fight league Invicta as a 'ring card boy' - something he said was designed at breaking the stigma of the sexualization of 'ring girls' at combat sports events. 

“I’m trying to add, not subtract or distract, when I make my Invicta debut,” Theodorou said previously to TheMacLife of his 'ring card boy' career.

“I’m not going to make a mockery of it, I’m going to wear the clothes that I feel comfortable in, which will be athletic shorts and I’m going to wearing a top that’s open in a classy and professional way. I’ll be doing the same thing that my female counterparts are doing.

“I’m going to treat it with respect. I’m going to treat my female counterparts with respect. I’m not looking to make this a one off, I plan on doing this regularly with Invicta.

“It’s not me having a one-and-done just for shits n’ giggles, I plan on doing this for the long haul and I’m really excited to be a part of the Invicta team. It’s not going to be The Elias Show, it’s all about the powerful women that will be on the card fighting.”

Thedorous's death was noted by several figures within the MMA community, including his friend and active UFC welterweight Michael Chiesa.

“I've always said the greatest gifts this sport has given me are friendships and memories,” said Chiesa in a video message posted to social media.

“Elias was such a light-hearted guy. He's the type of guy who'd give you the shirt off his back ... While I'm sad like a lot of people, he touched a lot of lives. But I have to remember I'm very blessed that I had the friendship I had with him.”

UFC welterweight contender Belal Muhammad also spoke of his sadness: “Wow Rest In Peace.”

UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling added: “Wow. Loss for words on hearing the news on one of the nicest guys I’ve met in this sport. RIP Elias. This is saddening.”