Former UFC fighter James Vick suffered a severe knockout at Karate Combat 47, leading to hospitalization and prompting Karate Combat president Asim Zaidi to express concerns about Vick’s future in fighting, despite Vick’s desire to return.
Former UFC fighter James Vick faced one of the scariest knockouts in combat sports history at Karate Combat 47 last Friday night.
Rafael Alves delivered a switch kick that left Vick unconscious, marking an unforgettable moment in promotional history. Vick was out cold for quite some time before being sent to the hospital. Reports soon emerged detailing just how severe the aftermath was for Vick.
Karate Combat president Asim Zaidi shared his reaction and provided clarity on the situation.
“I’ll tell you this: The event, this was supposed to be an event for our prospects, sort of a filler event, a smaller Karate Combat to set up our bigger shows,” Zaidi told MMA Fighting. “It was going so well, and just everything about it was just so electrifying and perfect — even the whole brawl, strangle incident was hilarious. The crowd was chanting, they had a great time with it. No one got hurt. It worked out in a very positive way, everything was happy, and at that moment when James Vick got knocked out, I could no longer be happy.
“It really sucked because it was one of the most successful shows, sold-out crowd, everyone cheering. I could have gone home and had a very great night and celebrated a wonderful event. But I couldn’t because my heart was broken due to such a tough knockout. It’s hard for me to watch the video; I cringe every time.”
“Yes, he was KO’d; he was out for a while. We didn’t show it on the broadcast, but he seized. They took him into the ambulance; he needed help breathing; they put some tubes in for breathing support.”
Vick’s UFC run ended with four straight losses by knockout from Justin Gaethje, Dan Hooker, Niko Price; then stopped by Andre Fialho outside of the octagon for XMMA.
After pivoting to boxing with consecutive knockout wins and trying his hand in Karate Combat (going 1-2), Vick returned after 14 months only to suffer this jaw-dropping knockout.
Despite regaining consciousness and discussing fight details post-knockout with clarity—Zaidi doesn’t want Vick competing again anywhere.
“He woke up and I went to visit him right when he woke up,” Zaidi said. “He immediately started talking strategy: ‘What did I mess up? What did he hit me with?’ When I told him it was a switch kick—he understood everything.”
“Thank God he’s good now—discharged and home—but I don’t want him back in the pit again.” Zaidi added reluctantly but firmly that it’s time for Vick to focus on coaching his talented students instead of fighting.
Zaidi hopes Vick will continue as a coach or even join Karate Combat’s broadcast team someday.
However, when asked about Vick’s intentions regarding competition—Zaidi noted there were no signs of wanting to walk away from fighting yet.
“He mentioned wanting to come back,” Zaidi explained. “But it’s not going to happen—for his own safety—and he has other avenues within the sport where he can excel.”