Mark Coleman is fighting for his life after being airlifted to hospital following a fire that overwhelmed the former UFC champ, who reportedly helped rescue his parents from the burning property.
The UFC legend, former champ, and Hall of Fame member was attending a property in Fremont, OH when a fire broke out sometime early Tuesday morning. According to online reports, Coleman pulled his father and mother out of the building, but returned to rescue his dog, who had alerted the family to the fire. Coleman by that time was suffering from smoke inhalation, and passed out, later to be rescued by the Ballville Volunteer Fire Department.
Coleman was airlifted to hospital; his current condition is unknown. Per a report by WTOL, which does not identify Coleman or his family by name, the roof of the home collapsed shortly after crews arrived. Due to no fire hydrant being situated near the home, a portable pond was utilized to fight the blaze.
The heavyweight’s dog, Hammer, reportedly perished in the blaze.
This is what's left of the house Mark Coleman and his family were in last night.
Mark's dog Hammer woke him up to a house in flames. He saved both his parents and is fighting for his life. pic.twitter.com/hicYhv7SDm
— Jonathan Snowden (@JESnowden) March 12, 2024
Coleman, 59, retired from professional fighting after a 2010 loss to fellow legend Randy Couture. He shared the cage with the likes of Shogun Rua, Fedor Emelianenko, Cro-Cop, Big Nog, Don Frye and others, and won both the UFC 10 and UFC 11 single-night tournaments.
In 1997, at UFC 12, he won the inaugural UFC heavyweight championship, defeating Dan “The Beast” Severn in the process. “The Hammer” suffered a heart attack in 2020, successfully undergoing surgery to alleviate a complete artery blockage.
Update, 7:30PM ET: Bill Lagrou, Chief of the Ballville Volunteer Fire Department, tells Cageside Press that Coleman, referred to only as the “victim” for privacy reasons, is in a Toledo area hospital. The remainder of the family, per Chief Lagrou, are staying with a family member.
Update, 9:45PM ET: In an update, the Ballville Volunteer Fire Department confirmed to Cageside Press that the source of the blaze was an oven fire. All other victims besides Mark Coleman were treated at the scene and released.
