21 Wrestlers Who Died In 2018
15. Matt Cappotelli (29 June)
In July 2017, Tough Enough III winner Matt Cappotelli was diagnosed with grade IV glioblastoma mulitforme, a type of brain cancer. In May of this year, Cappotelli's wife Lindsay sadly announced that his neuro-oncologists had made the agonising decision to discontinue treatment.
On 29 June, Lindsay posted that Cappotelli had tragically passed away:
Hey Team Capp...I’ve been struggling with what to say and how to say this, and I’ll probably end up rambling, but here goes. Today my love-my strong, sweet, beautiful love-took his last breath at 3:30 a.m. and went Home to be with Jesus...exactly one year after his brain surgery. You think you can be prepared for this when you know it’s coming, but you just can’t. The only person who’s comfort I want right now is the one who can’t give it to me. I miss him so much. I know where he is now is so much better, but it doesn’t change how much I miss him.
He was just 38-years old.
Cappotelli made his mark on the wrestling world when he triumphed as one of the winners of the third season of WWE's reality contest Tough Enough. He graduated alongside John Hennigan (the future Johnny Nitro), earning a place in the company's development territory OVW, but was forced to retire just two years into his tenure after being diagnosed with a brain tumor. The illness was successfully treated, but sadly returned in 2017.