Michael Kirkham was a tall man with big dreams.
Related Stories
His towering height of 6 feet, 9 inches earned him the nickname "Tree" and gave him a natural advantage as a painter at construction sites.
His ambition, however, was to wield his stature as a professional fighter in the rough-and-tumble arena of mixed martial arts.
"He always wanted his name known worldwide," his brother TJ Kirkham said.
Michael Kirkham, 30, achieved a measure of fame Saturday at an unexpected and devastating cost.
After two years of struggling to make a name in MMA, he finally landed his first professional fight at the University of South Carolina Aiken's Confrontation at the Convocation.
His opponent was Carlos Iraburo, another lightweight with a 4-0 amateur record who also had decided to launch his professional career.
About a minute into the fight, Iraburo was straddling Kirkham on the mat and punching him in the face. The referee called him off after a few seconds, and Iraburo said he immediately stopped and stood up. Kirkham lay there not moving, his eyes half open, taking slow, deep breaths, Iraburo said.
Medics rushed into the ring to stabilize Kirkham, who was taken to nearby Aiken Regional Medical Centers. He never regained consciousness and died Monday of bleeding on the brain, the Aiken County coroner said.
Kirkham's death set the Internet ablaze with rumor and speculation, because it apparently was only the second fatality related to MMA fighting in the United States.
Critics of MMA were quick to pounce on the death as proof of what they perceive as the unleashed brutality of cage fighting. Bloggers and Web site commentators speculated on everything from Kirkham's weight -- 155 pounds -- to his record.
The sudden publicity and harsh judgment only exacerbated the grief for Kirkham's family. His brother spoke with The Augusta Chronicle to set the record straight and show the world who Michael was outside the ring.
Before fighting, training and playing guitar, Kirkham's No. 1 priority was his family.
"His most prized possession was his kids," TJ Kirkham said.
A Beardstown, Ill., native, Michael Kirkham moved to Gaston, S.C., in 2004 to be closer to his brother. He later met his fiancee, Jessica Paulson, and they had three children together: ages 4, 3, and 5 months. Michael also had two children, ages 11 and 7, in Illinois.
TJ Kirkham describes his brother as a devoted father who was involved in his children's lives. When construction work was scarce, he walked three hours to the closest job.
His journey toward professional MMA fighting started two years ago. He had limited access to a gym or a coach, but his family knew that wouldn't stop him.
Instead of treadmills and barbells, Kirkham jogged dusty roads and lifted cinder blocks.
He watched hours of MMA fighting, then applied what he saw in skirmishes with his brother and other wrestling partners heavier than he was.
He pleaded, cajoled and pestered promoters for fights, and slowly began building a reputation.
He had an amateur record of three wins -- including a tap-out in 11 seconds -- and three losses.
His credo: "You can't be a gracious winner without being a gracious loser."
Kirkham expanded his passion for MMA by founding a club named the Fayetteville Independents and recruited other amateur fighters from around the country.
There is speculation online about how a man as tall as Kirkham could be only 155 pounds, but TJ Kirkham attributes it strictly to his brother's metabolism and natural weight loss.
He acknowledges that MMA took his brother's life but said he would be devastated if the sport were banned in South Carolina.
"My brother died doing what he loved," he said.
Michael Kirkham is survived by his fiancee and five children. He had no life insurance. If you'd like to help the family, donations can be made at Pizza Joint locations in Aiken, Augusta and Evans or at the Limelite Cafe across from the Regal Exchange Movie Theatre. Donations can be made online at michaelkirkhammemorialfund.viviti.com.
Mixed martial arts have increased in popularity during the past decade as fans of the sport made it a lucrative pay-per-view television venture.
It combines elements of boxing, wrestling and other fighting techniques into a full-contact sport.
Chuck Liddell, Brock Lesnar and Kimbo Slice are just some of the fan favorites who have become champions in the octagonal cages, the sport's signature stage for competitions.
Ultimate Fighting Championship is the most successful promoter of mixed martial arts events and regularly stages the top events in the world.
-- From staff reports
many people "die doing what they loved"...that doesn't make it right....it's MUCH better to LIVE doing what you love...
Anyone involved in contact "sports" should understand that it could (and does) cost you your life. I see no sport in beating each other's brains out--even when professional boxers survive the years in the ring, they are usually reduced to less then what they were when they began their career. Sorry the man died, but it isn't a surprise.
Why do people seem so surprised by this man's death? MMA is a brutal, unforgiving sport.
Just wanted to give my blessings to the family . Also wanted to point out to bradycarlos you must be related to miss america this article had nothing to do with what you were raving about. Maybe try reading the article again slower.
I compare MMA bouts in the same way as cockfighting, dogfighting, and hog/dog fighting. Cockfighting, dogfighting, and hog/dog fighting are all illegal as they inflict injuries and sometimes death as these beasts battle it out in a ring. As you can see the same thing happens in MMA bouts. You have human beasts pummeling each other and inflicting pain on their opponents that can result in death. The human body can only take so much abuse no matter how big and mean you think you are. The MMA is a barbaric and inhumane event that only sick people get turned on to watching. Many of the same spectators would surely be appalled at seeing dogs fight, or would they? The ONLY thing that makes this MMA legal is the fact that they are not using weapons in the ring. Well, you know certain blows to the head or torso with kicks and punches can inflict the same damage as a weapon can as we saw at the USCA Convocation center. This is not a sport and should be banned. This is no different than cockfighting and it should be treated as the same. I will be contacting my state senator and representative asking them to work to ban this barbaric activity from SC.
My condolences to the family of Mr. Kirkham. It's an unfortunate fact that any sport, or really anything that we do that exerts our bodies can and sometimes does kill us. curly, before you write that letter to your state rep, perhaps you should ask him to ban ALL sports, as many of them are just as 'brutal' I submit; Football, High School Wrestling, Boxing, Basketball, Rugby to name a few. Perhaps we should ensure that the state reps pass a law that forbids all recreational activity, since surely someone could get hurt doing these activities. We have to protect them from themselves right?
curly, this was a terrible tragedy and I can understand how the initial reaction of some is to call for an instant ban. But MMA has a much safer track record than many other mainstream sports. Unlike its origins (which more closely resembled the cockfighting analogy), modern MMA is governed by a strict set of rules with a referee ready to intervene the moment a fighter becomes unable to defend himself. This is the second death ever in a sanctioned MMA event. Compare that to boxing, football, racing, not to mention a number of extreme sports (think the X games), and you'll find that MMA fares much better. If we start banning all sports/activities the moment a participant is seriously injured or dies, pretty soon there wouldn't be any sports left.
More people have been killed falling down their basement steps then in MMA fights. It was freak accident that pulled his ticket. But I do agree with the fact that their are safer ways to stay in shape and stay alive.
The Augusta Chronicle ©2012. All Rights Reserved.
Back 
