Joao Carvalho competed against Charlie Ward in Total Extreme Fighting’s inaugural event on Saturday night at The National Stadium in Dublin.

Having suffered a third round KO loss in the three round bout, Carvalho felt ‘ill’ twenty minutes after the fight, and was admitted to Beaumont hospital where he became ‘critical’.

Vitor Nobrega of Carvalho’s ‘Nobrega Team’ confirmed the tragic passing in a recent statement.

Nota falecimento A Nobrega Team vem desta forma confirmar o falecimento do seu atleta Joao Carvalho, que ocorreu ontem… Posted by Nóbrega team on Tuesday, April 12, 2016

(Rough translation below)

“Death notice The Nobrega team confirms the passing of our athlete Joao Carvalho, which occurred last night in Beaumont hospital, in Dublin, at 21:35 hours. It is with great sorrow and sadness that we write these words, that the death of the athlete João Carvalho happened after 48 hours in critical condition. During the TEF MMA event, which took place on Saturday, at the National Boxing Stadium in Dublin, they complied with all the safety rules, and after the fight followed all the correct procedures and regulations, but Joao felt bad about 20 minutes after the end of the fight. Still on the site, he was immediately assisted by the medical team and was then quickly transported to the Beaumont hospital, where he was subjected to a surgical brain intervention, after which the athlete remained in critical condition. During the 48 hours following, he eventually passed away on Monday at 21:35 hours. Despite the continued monitoring from the doctor who was part of the organisation of the event and the hospital, the support of the Irish, which we appreciate in these difficult times, and although the risks of this sport are known, the passing of Joao Carvalho in my professional point of view was a great deal of misery. It was deeply saddening and dismaying, both for his family, as well as the whole Team Nóbrega team, who always accompanied Joao Carvalho throughout his career, in which he competed at the national and international level. It is with great regret that we offer our heartfelt condolences to the families and the whole Nobrega team.”

The event organisers emphasised in the aftermath that they followed all correct medical procedures and practices. Eventmed in particular were on call to respond to any medical issues arising at the event, with a team of three doctors and seven medics.

According to Eventmed owner, Katarzyna Michlic (via SevereMMA), full post-fight medical protocol was observed while dealing with the late Portuguese.

“The bout he was involved in was a three-round fight,” explained Michlic. “The first round was fought at a very fast pace, and at the end of it he was bleeding from the nose. “The doctors checked him between each round and each time he gave a full response to them. He responded to each question. He was asked where he was, what round he was going in to and what day of the week it was, and all of his answers were perfect. “When the referee stopped the fight in the third round, our team of doctors and medics looked after him as he was bleeding quite heavily from his nose. He was asked if he felt any pain or was suffering with any headaches directly after the fight, and he said he had no pain or headaches, but he did feel quite tired. “It was explained to him that he had to visit the medical room that was set up in the venue and that he would have to go to the hospital afterwards, because the doctor recommended that he should have a CT scan after the fight. At this stage, the fighter was walking, talking and smiling. Everything seemed perfectly fine. “After he walked back to the medical room the doctors did some tests backstage and there was nothing out of the ordinary about their results. They prepared the ambulance to take him to the hospital. “Ten minutes later he started complaining that he was suffering from headaches. He felt a lot of nausea and he began to vomit. Five minutes later he was significantly worse so we got him into the ambulance and rang the hospital to let them know he was coming.”

Our thoughts and condolences are with the family, friends and team of the late Joao Carvalho.

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