Conor McGregor has suggested the fight that led to the death of MMA fighter Joao Carvalho could have been stopped earlier by the referee. 
 
 It was announced today that the 28-year-old had died on Monday night after spending 48 hours in a critica Carvalho l condition due to the injuries suffered in his bout in Dublin. 
 
 Carvalho had competed on the card at the Total Extreme Fighting (TEF) event at the National Stadium in the Irish capital on Saturday, in which his fight with Irishman Charlie Ward was stopped by the referee in the third round. 
 
 Welterweight Carvalho was tended to immediately by medical personnel before being rushed to Beaumont Hospital. 
 
 Speaking after the fight, UFC featherweight champion McGregor said that the fight perhaps should have been halted earlier. 
 
 “My team-mate Charlie had a good win just there. Hell of a fight. Yer man [Carvalho] took some big shots," McGregor told MMAConnectTV. "Thought it could have been stopped a little earlier. I feel these referee’s need to be on the ball a little bit." 
 
 Conor McGregor prepares for his UFC 196 fight with Nate Diaz (AP) 
 
 Arguably the most recognisable face in UFC went on to say that the medical care received by Carvalho was first class. 
 
 “To see the way it’s all progressed, the regulations and everything, all the medical staff and everything. It’s proper now. To see this is great,” said the Irishman. 
 
 Eventmed were at the National Stadium to respond to any medical issues that arose, with owner Katarzyna Michlic saying that full post-fight medical protocol was observed. 
 
 “The bout he was involved in was a three-round fight,” explained Michlic to SevereMMA.com. “The first round was fought at a very fast pace, and at the end of it he was bleeding from the nose. 
 
 “The doctors checked him between each round and each time he gave a full response to them. He responded to each question. He was asked where he was, what round he was going in to and what day of the week it was, and all of his answers were perfect. 
 
 “When the referee stopped the fight in the third round, our team of doctors and medics looked after him as he was bleeding quite heavily from his nose. He was asked if he felt any pain or was suffering with any headaches directly after the fight, and he said he had no pain or headaches, but he did feel quite tired. 
 
 “It was explained to him that he had to visit the medical room that was set up in the venue and that he would have to go to the hospital afterwards, because the doctor recommended that he should have a CT scan after the fight. At this stage, the fighter was walking, talking and smiling. Everything seemed perfectly fine. 
 
 “After he walked back to the medical room the doctors did some tests backstage and there was nothing out of the ordinary about their results. They prepared the ambulance to take him to the hospital. 
 
 “Ten minutes later he started complaining that he was suffering from headaches. He felt a lot of nausea and he began to vomit. Five minutes later he was significantly worse so we got him into the ambulance and rang the hospital to let them know he was coming.” 
 
 A statement by TEF’s CEO Cesar Silva read: “We extend our most sincere condolences to the family of Joao Carvalho’s and his team-mates in Team Nobrega. Our thoughts and prayers are with them. We’d also like to thank all sports fans for their concern and support. 
 
 “We will give whatever support we can to Joao’s family. We have been in contact with his family and they have requested that we all understand their need for privacy at this difficult time.” 
 
 Carvalho fought under the Nobrega team name, and they issued a statement of their own to say they were “deeply saddened and dismayed” after hearing of his death and passed on their condolences to his family. 
 
 The statement added that Carvalho was gaining recognition on both a “national and international level”, having fought with the Nobrega team throughout his career. 

 Image copyright Jerry McCarthy/KO Media Image caption Joao Carvalho underwent emergency brain surgery after the fight against Charlie Ward 
 
 A Portuguese mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter has died after an event in the Republic of Ireland on Saturday. 
 
 Joao Carvalho was taken to hospital after being beaten in a fight at the National Stadium in Dublin by Charlie Ward, a team-mate of UFC champion Conor McGregor. 
 
 The 28-year-old underwent emergency brain surgery and was in a critical condition for 48 hours. 
 
 However, a statement from his Vitor Nobrega team confirmed he had died. 
 
 Heartbreaking 
 
 Irishman McGregor, who was at ringside for the fight, said Carvalho "was a hell of a fighter and will be sorely missed by all". 
 
 "The fight was so back and forth that I just can't understand it," McGregor added. 
 
 "Nobody involved in combat sports of any kind wants to see this. 
 
 "It is such a rare occurrence that I don't know how to take this. 
 
 "To see a young man doing what he loves, competing for a chance at a better life, and then to have it taken away is truly heartbreaking." 
 
 Support 
 
 Total Extreme Fighting, which organised the event, said it was "deeply saddened" by Carvalho's death. 
 
 "We extend our most sincere condolences to the family of Joao Carvalho and his team-mates in Team Nobrega," said Cesar Silva, the chief executive of Total Extreme Fighting. 
 
 "We'd also like to thank all sports fans for their concern and support. 
 
 "We will give whatever support we can to Joao's family." 
 
 John Kavanagh, who coaches McGregor, was in Ward's corner during the fight and asked people to respect the privacy of the Portuguese fighter's family. 
 
 Kavanagh also works with the Irish Amateur Pankration Association (IAPA), which represents MMA in the country, and said the group will be working with Total Extreme Fighting to establish "all relevant facts and event processes" in the incident. 

 DUBLIN — A mixed martial arts group says a 28-year-old Portuguese fighter has died following a fight in Dublin. 
 
 Total Extreme Fighting said Tuesday that Joao Carvalho died after two days of treatment. He was hospitalized after being knocked out in the third round of a welterweight fight against Charlie Ward at the National Stadium in Dublin on Saturday. 
 
 MMA FIGHTING MOVES CLOSER TO LEGALIZATION IN NEW YORK 
 
 Portuguese MMA fighter Joao Carvalho died after competing in a Total Extreme Fighting event in Dublin against Charlie ‘The Hospital’ Ward. (Nobrega Team/via Facebook) 
 
 Cesar Silva, CEO of TEF, said the organization extends its “most sincere condolences to the family of Joao Carvalho and his teammates in Team Nobrega. Our thoughts and prayers are with them.” 
 
 TEF said in the statement that Carvalho was assessed by doctors and medical staff at the onsite medical office “as per normal procedure” after the fight, and then sent to hospital. 
 
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 (Photo courtesy Team Nobrega) 
 
 Joao Carvalho, a mixed-martial arts fighter from Portugal, has died after he was knocked out in a fight Saturday in Dublin. 
 
 Total Extreme Fighting announced Tuesday that Carvalho, 28, died Monday night after undergoing emergency brain surgery Saturday night, according to Independent.com. 
 
 [Conor McGregor: MMA fighter’s death after Dublin match is ‘heartbreaking’] 
 
 “We extend our most sincere condolences to the family of Joao Carvalho’s and his teammates in Team Nobrega,” TEF chief executive officer Cesar Silva said in a statement. “Our thoughts and prayers are with them. We’d also like to thank all sports fans for their concern and support. 
 
 “We will give whatever support we can to Joao’s family. We have been in contact with his family and they have requested that we all understand their need for privacy at this difficult time.” 
 
 Graphic video of the welterweight fight shows Charlie Ward, an Irishman who is a teammate of UFC star Conor McGregor, pummeling Carvalho’s head. Just as the video ends, he keels over. The fight was stopped in the third round by the referee. 
 
 In its statement, TEF said that Carvalho was examined by doctors and other medical staff at the National Stadium’s medical office “as per normal procedure” after the fight. 
 
 “The doctors checked him between each round and each time he gave a full response to them,” Katarzyna Michlic, owner of Eventmed, which put on the fight, told Severe MMA. “He responded to each question. He was asked where he was, what round he was going into and what day of the week it was, and all of his answers were perfect. 
 
 “When the referee stopped the fight in the third round, our team of doctors and medics looked after him as he was bleeding quite heavily from his nose. He was asked if he felt any pain or was suffering with any headaches directly after the fight, and he said he had no pain or headaches, but he did feel quite tired.” 
 
 His condition then deteriorated. 
 
 “Ten minutes later he started complaining that he was suffering from headaches,” Michlic said. “He felt a lot of nausea and he began to vomit. Five minutes later he was significantly worse so we got him into the ambulance and rang the hospital to let them know he was coming.” 
 
 McGregor said he thought the fight could have been stopped earlier. 
 
 “My teammate Charlie had a good win just there. Hell of a fight. Yer man [Carvalho] took some big shots,” McGregor, the UFC featherweight champ, told MMAConnectTV (via Independent.com). “Thought it could have been stopped a little earlier. I feel these referees need to be on the ball a little bit.” 
 
 Carvalho’s Nobrega team coach, Vitor Nobrega, wrote in a statement on Facebook that it was “deeply saddened and dismayed” by his death. 

 Published on Apr 10, 2016 
 
 This footage was captured by SportsJOE MMA reporter Ben Kiely. 
 
 
 
 It shows the final moments of Charlie Ward fight with Joao Carvalho at Total Extreme Fighting 1 in the National Arena on 09.04.16. 
 
 
 
 Shortly after the fight Carvalho was taken to Beaumont Hospital in Dublin where he died on Monday April 11.
– A 28-year-old MMA fighter from Portugal died Monday night, 48 hours after he was knocked out during the third round of a fight in Dublin, the New York Daily News reports. According to the Washington Post, graphic video from the fight on Saturday shows Joao Carvalho tipping over after being hit in the head multiple times by Irish fighter Charlie Ward. The owner of the company that organized the fight says Carvalho was able to correctly answer questions in between rounds, but his health went downhill immediately after the fight. It started with a feeling of exhaustion before progressing to headaches, nausea, and vomiting. He was taken to the hospital. Carvalho had emergency brain surgery and spent the next two days in critical condition. "Nobody involved in combat sports of any kind wants to see this," MMA star Conor McGregor, who was at the fight, tells the BBC. "To see a young man doing what he loves, competing for a chance at a better life, and then to have it taken away is truly heartbreaking." McGregor, who called Carvalho "a hell of a fighter," criticized the referees for not stopping the fight earlier, the Independent reports. Cesar Silver, CEO of Total Extreme Fighting, offered "sincere condolences" to Carvalho's family and teammates in a statement: "Our thoughts and prayers are with them.”