Mauricio Zingano, husband and head coach of No. 1 ranked UFC women’s bantamweight contender Cat Zingano, died Monday, the Jefferson County Coroner’s Office confirmed to MMAFighting.com.
Zingano was found dead at his residence Monday night in Colorado. An official cause of death is pending an autopsy scheduled to be performed on Wednesday.
Zingano was 37 years old. He is survived by his wife, Cat, and his young son, Brayden.
A third-degree black belt under Carlos Elias, Zingano owned and operated two gyms in Colorado under the Zingano BJJ name, in partnership with Black House MMA. Zingano also carried an undefeated 2-0-1 professional mixed martial arts record, having last fought in mid-2003.
Mauricio and Cat Zingano married in 2010. Under Mauricio’s instruction, Cat Zingano rose to prominence on the strength of a perfect 7-0 regional record before exploding onto the global scene with a brutal TKO victory over Miesha Tate in April 2013.
The victory earned Cat Zingano a UFC title shot and coaching spot opposite Ronda Rousey on TUF 18, however she ultimately forfeited both prizes due to a serious of devastating knee injuries.
Although Cat Zingano and her family have yet to publicly comment on her husband’s passing, Zingano posted the following message on her Facebook Tuesday morning.