Report: Kimbo Slice was told he needed heart transplant before death

Kimbo Slice was told by doctors that he needed a heart transplant in the days before his death Monday, according to a report Tuesday afternoon from the Sun Sentinel in Florida.

Slice was in the process of being transferred to a facility in Cleveland where he'd be put on an organ donors list when he died at around 7:30 p.m. local time Monday, per a report sent from the hospital to the Broward County Medical Examiner's office and obtained by the paper.

Slice, whose real name is Kevin Ferguson, had been at Northwest Medical Center in Margate, Fla., for three days. He was admitted June 3 after complaining of severe abdominal pain, shortness of breath and nausea, the Sun Sentinel reported. Ferguson was diagnosed with congestive heart failure and a liver mass and was placed on a ventilator in intensive care.

The report stated that Ferguson, 42, had no history of illicit drug use and foul play was not suspected in his death. Ferguson did test positive for steroids after his fight with Dhafir "Dada 5000" Harris at Bellator 149 in February.

A Broward County Medical Examiner spokesperson told MMA Fighting on Tuesday that the medical examiner would not be conducting an autopsy or toxicology report on Ferguson because the case was not in its jurisdiction. Ferguson's physician will be filling out the death certificate and determining cause of death, per the medical examiner's office.

Ferguson was scheduled to face James Thompson at Bellator 158 on July 16 in London. He was coming off a third-round TKO win over Harris that got overturned to a no-contest after the positive drug test.

Ferguson went from YouTube backyard fighting sensation -- and one of the first online viral video stars -- to mixed martial arts riches. He set ratings records everywhere he went, from EliteXC to the UFC to Bellator MMA. Ferguson will go down as one of the most recognizable and popular figures in the history of the sport.