Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Rest In Peace Charles Lewis

The MMA community suffered another huge loss today, as Charles Lewis, a.k.a. "Mask" of the TapouT crew, was killed in a car crash in Newport Beach, California. Attend almost any fight show out on the West Coast and you'd run into the garishly-dressed TapouT crew, shaking hands, posing for pics and repping their popular clothing brand. I only knew Charles in that capacity, but he was friendly as hell and treated everyone like a long-lost brother (at the last EliteXC in Florida, he saw me and affectionately pressed his forehead to mine). When we lose a fighter, we think of the battles they've given us in the cage or ring, and the battles they'll no longer fight. Losing Charles means we've lost one of the sport's biggest supporters - a man who sponsored tons of fighters and helped ingrain MMA into the public's consciousness. Rest in peace, Mask. You will be missed.