Former heavyweight champion, Tommy "the Duke" Morrison died at the age of 44.
According to the Associated Press, Morrison died Sunday night at a Nebraska hospital. The family has not revealed the cause of death.
The news was confirmed by his longtime promoter and close friend, Tony Holden.
According to ESPN News, in 1993, Morrison beat heavyweight champion George Foreman to win the WBO heavyweight title. Morrison lost the title to Lennox Lewis. Morrison would fight Lewis a couple of years later, getting knocked out in the sixth round in Atlantic City, N.J.
Morrison also had a starring role in "Rocky V" alongside Sylvester Stallone. Morrison grabbed headlines when he admitted to testing positive for HIV. Years later, Morrison admits the test results were false.
Morrison's fighting license was quickly suspended by Nevada and he was banned. Morrison said at a news conference that would never fight again, blaming his plight on a "permissive, fast and reckless lifestyle."
Along with numerous legal issues, including a prison sentence for illegal weapons and drunk driving, Morrison's name became attached to headlines that would eventually overshadow his work in the ring.
In 1993, Morrison pleaded guilty to assaulting a college student. He was sentenced to two years in prison in 2000, and another year was added to his sentence in 2002 for violating parole.
After being released from prison, Morrison said his HIV tests had resulted in false positives.
He also wanted to resume his career. Morrison fought twice more in his career, winning once in West Virginia and for the final time in Mexico. He finished with a record of 48-3-1 with 42 knockouts, according to ESPN.
"If Tommy was fighting today, he no doubt would be a world champion," Holden told the AP. "You have to look at who he was fighting in the '90s, the guys in that division were Tyson, Lennox Lewis, Riddick Bowe, Ray Mercer, George Foreman. There's no one with that talent today. Tommy would absolutely dominate if he were in his prime boxing today."
