February 26, 2007 Observer Newsletter: Mike Awesome passes away, WWE pay-per-view changes

Michael Alfonso, best known as Mike Awesome and in Japan as The Gladiator, a two-time ECW champion who was probably the most spectacular flier of his size in wrestling, was found dead by friends on 2/17, presumably form a suicide as he was hanging at his home. He was 42.

According to police reports, Alfonso, who lived in Tampa, was going to go out with friends on Saturday night. When they came to get him at about 10:30 p.m., he didn’t answer the door. However, one of them saw him hanging through the window and called police but he was already dead. There is no information regarding any suicide note or depression, but his friends in Japan were saying he had a bad last few days before his apparent suicide. His health had started to take a turn for the worst in 2006 as well.

Alfonso, who was a relative of Hulk Hogan’s, grew up with Hulk’s nephew Mike Bollea, who wrestled most of his career as Horace Hogan. Alfonso’s father’s sister married Hulk Hogan’s oldest brother. The couple’s oldest son was Mike Bollea. Alfonso and Mike Bollea grew up together, decided to be wrestlers together, broke in together, and were a tag team in Japan for years.

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