“RIP Hammer” – Mark Coleman’s Heroics Meets Sad End as UFC Legend’s Pet Dog Loses Life; Israel Adesanya and Gordon Ryan Join MMA World in Devastating Time

Heroes are made and not born and Mark Coleman has proved every bit of that proverb. The UFC Hall of Famer is currently in the hospital and seems like he will be in their care for quite some time. According to the reports, Coleman’s residence suffered a horrible fire accident. Coleman rushed toward his house to save his family. However, despite saving his parents, he couldn’t rescue the family dog. Moreover, after entering for the third time into the burning building, he succumbed to unconsciousness after inhaling smoke.

Taking a stroll back in time, Coleman was already suffering from some heart ailments. In 2020, Coleman fell victim to a heart attack but fate saved him. At that time, The Hall of Famer took to social media to state that the time for his impending death was far away. However, fast forwarding today, Coleman is suffering from horrible injuries now and the MMA community is in shock.

Coming back to the incident. On Tuesday, March 12, 2024, a fire started in the residence of Coleman’s. As soon as the fire department got the news, they rushed to the scene of the blazing fire, their sirens wailing through in the early mornings. As per the reports, Mark Coleman and their family were fast asleep on the scene, however, their family dog Hammer was alerted by something in the kitchen.

Hammer informed Coleman about the fire and the first thing the former fighter did was ensure everyone’s safety. The 59-year-old quickly dove in to save his father, then he ran back into the burning house to save his mother. He then ran back again to save Hammer. Coleman did save his parents but he did not make it in time to save his heroic dog: Hammer.

His parents were unharmed but the back and forth took a heavy toll on the UFC legend. Going into the burning house for the third time, the 59-year-old passed out while trying to save Hammer. The lethal smoke emanating from the burning house took Coleman out. Thankfully, The Ballville Volunteer Fire Department arrived soon at the scene and Coleman was airlifted to the nearest hospital. Nevertheless, the MMA world united to send their thoughts to the UFC Hall of Famer.

The MMA community came in unison to pray for Mark Coleman

Reports suggest that Mark Coleman’s condition remains critical currently. However, the medics are trying their best to ensure that the former fighter makes a complete recovery. The MMA community was in shock after the incident. From Ryan Gordon to Israel Adesanya, everyone came forward to send prayers to the former champion.

UFC’s strawweight fighter Tatiana Suarez gave her respect to Hammer and wrote “RIP Hammer. A hero praying for Mark”, American football tight end for the Chicago Bears of the National Football League, Marcedes Lewis added prayer emojis for Mark and his family. Joanna Jedrzejczyk added a sad emoji, and Tito Ortiz added a prayer emoji.

UFC Hall of Famer Dan Severn took to his X(Formerly Twitter) handle to share a message for everyone “Please join me in sending prayers and our best wishes to my friend Mark Coleman. He bravely rescued his parents from a fire in their home and is now in critical condition in the hospital. Mark has always been a fighter and is now fighting for his life.” 

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu goat, Ryan Gordon, added a dedicated post for Coleman on his Instagram handle. The caption read as  @markcolemanufc can’t catch a break. First, his hip needs surgery, and then he gets it infected. As he’s making his recovery, he finds himself in a house fire which he carried his parents out of, but ended up in ICU in the process. I’ve been friends with Mark for a few years now after meeting him in 2019 at a quintet in Vegas. Hoping for the best for you, buddy. Stay strong, legend.”

The former middleweight champion, Israel Adesanya took to his Instagram handle to add a story reiterating Mark Coleman’s heroic act. When will Coleman be discharged from the hospital? We don’t know, but prayers from the entire MMA community are with the former UFC fighter.