Former UFC fighter Josh Barnett has shared his thoughts on the Phil Baroni situation.
On Wednesday it was confirmed that Baroni was arrested for allegedly killing his girlfriend in Mexico.
Via ESPN
Former mixed martial arts fighter Phil Baroni has been arrested in Mexico for allegedly killing his girlfriend, the prosecutors’ office in the Pacific coast state of Nayarit said Wednesday.
The office said a woman was found dead on Sunday in the beach town of San Fernando, just north of the resort of Puerto Vallarta. The office identified the suspect only by his nationality, American, and his first name in a statement. But a state official later confirmed his last name and said an initial hearing in the case would be held Monday.
While the official report contained few details, local media reported that a Mexican woman was found dead in a hotel room with bruises.
According to the newspaper Tribuna de la Bahia, Baroni summoned police and said the woman had slipped and hit her head after he threw her into the shower.
It was not clear if Baroni had a lawyer.
Barnett believes Baroni is suffering from CTE and cited several examples of Baroni’s declining mental health.
“The news about Phil Baroni is terrible and incredibly tragic as well,” Barnett tweeted after the news broke. “I’ve known Phil for 2 decades and at the 1st JB Bloodsport show could see that his personality and behavior was erratic, displaced, and emotionally he was all over the place and it was obvious why: CTE.”
“It was so tough dealing with him at the show that I couldn’t keep booking him even though I wanted to. He was too much to handle and so scattered. He blew up at me because I hadn’t used him again and I blocked him on social media but there wasn’t much I could do.”
Fighters, need to take of themselves and those around them need to be vigilant and watchful as well. I’ve seen the decline from the man I have been friends with for so long to where he was last I saw him and it’s heartbreaking. Now with what has happened in MX it’s just so awful.