Former Titan FC champion Rudson Caliocane is in the toughest fight of his life – and it’s not inside the cage.

The Brazilian fighter was forced to vacate his Titan FC bantamweight title after he suffered a brain stem ischemia. Now a GoFundMe has been started to help pay for his medical bills.

According to his manager, Alex Davis, Caliocane (7-2 MMA) began feeling unwell in the locker room after his Oct. 19 fight against Matheus Mendonca at Future FC 9. As he walked into the bathroom, he entered a semi-conscious state.

Shortly thereafter, Caliocane went to the hospital to be evaluated. Doctors said Caliocane suffered a brain stem ischemia, which they believe didn’t come as a direct result of the fight itself.

“This is an injury caused because of intense weight cutting,” Davis told MMA Junkie on Tuesday. “That’s what caused this. We have a new report from the doctors. They reached a conclusion that it wasn’t exactly in the fight; it was actually something that was created because he dropped too much weight.”

Photo via Titan Fighting Championships

Simply living day-to-day has been tough for Caliocane, according to Davis. The 27-year-old rising star is dealing with semi-paralysis of his left side and has trouble getting his words out. Davis can’t believe something like this would happen to not only a promising young athlete, but a quality human being as well.

“He’s a young kid, such a great kid, such a nice kid,” Davis said. “Everybody loves him, you know? It’s a sore situation. The problem with these kinds of situations is that nobody knows if he’s going to be better or if he’s not going to be better. Nobody knows what’s going to happen. We’re hopeful, and our first focus is on him getting better and being able to live a normal life.”

A combatant by trade, Caliocane is fighting for his health and livelihood, but he has a positive outlook. As for his fighting future, Davis said they’ve received conflicting opinions from medical professionals. The focus right now, however, is getting Caliocane back to living a normal life.

Despite Caliocane’s determination and positivity, Davis said the reality is his fighter needs help from the general public to assist with the costly treatment and medication. Caliocane doesn’t come from the wealthiest of places. He grew up in a poor area of Brazil, Cachoeiras de Macacacu in the state of Rio de Janeiro.

“Every cent that he can get his hands on is going to help him,” Davis said. “Not only can’t he fight, he can’t work. Now he’s going to have to treat himself. Future FC is helping us pay his medical exams. … But we need help from everybody to chip in.”

Titan FC COO Lex McMahon has started the GoFundMe in an attempt to raise money for Caliocane’s medical bills. Davis said he and Caliocane are truly grateful of McMahon’s generous efforts. See his message below:

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It is with a heavy heart that we share the news of a significant brain stem injury to our reigning Bantamweight Champion @rudsoncaliocane suffered in a non Titan fight in Brazil – Rudson is vacating his title to focus his energy on making a full recovery – please watch the video and click on the link in our bio to find out how you can join @titanfighting to help Rudson with his significant medical expenses by donating to his GoFundMe campaign. We’re with you champ! Get well soon. #titanfc #ufc #ufcfightpass #mma #champion #brazil

A post shared by Titan FC (@titanfighting) on Nov 5, 2019 at 9:24am PST

In a statement posted on the GoFundMe fundraiser page, Caliocane issued a statement:

“To my fans,

With the approval of Titan FC, I took a fight last week in Sao Paulo, Brazil, unfortunately I suffered a hemorrhage  of my brain stem.  It is not clear if or when I might be able to fight again. Because of this, I have decided to vacate my Titan FC Bantamweight World Championship Title, out of fairness to the division, and to Titan FC and lex McMahon who has given me the opportunity to fight for and hold the belt, and have treated me so well. Hopefully, I can come back and reconquer the Titan FC Bantamweight division in the near future. However, for now I must concentrate on on my health and getting better.

Thank you to all!

Sincerely

Rudson Caliocane”