Kevin Randleman started his professional mixed martial arts career in Brazil in 1996, facing some of the toughest local and American opponents around at the time. In just eight months, he fought eight times in three open-weight tournaments contested under vale tudo rules. His heart and courage won him fans and great respect from the entire Brazilian martial arts community.
Randleman’s unexpected death at the age of 44 on Feb. 11 sent pulses of emotion throughout Brazil. Former opponents like Carlos Barreto (met Randleman in the Universal Vale Tudo Fighting 6 final), Ebenezer Braga (engaged Randleman in a 20-minute war at UVF 6) and Murilo Rua (fought Randleman at Pride 24) took to social media to pay tribute to “The Monster,” along with admirers like Ricardo Arona and former Pride Fighting Championships titleholders Wanderlei Silva and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira.