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Ex-WWE wrestler Paige’s uncle dies after ‘incident’ at charity boxing match

‘Up until the end he had a heart of gold,’ niece Saraya says

Maryam Zakir-Hussain
Monday 03 October 2022 18:57 BST
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WWE wrestler Paige, now known as Saraya Bevis, paid tribute to her uncle Jules Bevis
WWE wrestler Paige, now known as Saraya Bevis, paid tribute to her uncle Jules Bevis (Jules Bevis/Getty/WWE)

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The uncle of former WWE wrestler Paige has died during an “unexplained incident” at a charity boxing match in Norwich.

Now known as Saraya Bevis, the ex-fighting champion confirmed her uncle died at her father’s gym on Diamond Road.

She said Jules Bevis collapsed in the ring and died in her “brother’s arms”.

In an emotional tribute to her uncle posted on Twitter, she wrote: “Keep thinking about my uncle. What a wonderful human he was. Up until the end, he had a heart of gold. He was doing a charity boxing match at my dad’s wrestling PC raising money for a little girl for her cancer treatments. In the ring, he collapsed & past [sic] in my brother Roy’s arms.”

She also tweeted her condolences to her family: “I want to give them the biggest hug because I can’t imagine how it felt seeing that and being there. Please swap them with love.”

Raised in Norwich, Ms Bevis shot to fame when she became the youngest Divas Champion in history at the age of just 21. But fighting career was cut short following a devastating neck injury in 2018.

She maintained her identity as a fighter nonetheless in the 2019 film, Fighting with my Family, produced by Dwayne Johnson aka the Rock.

The film depicted her coming-of-age story as a young wrestler as well as the less successful journey of her brother, known as Zak Zodiac.

Norfolk Police confirmed they were called to a report of a “sudden death after a man in his 50s had become unwell” during the match on Sunday afternoon on Diamond Road, Norwich.

Officers were called to the venue at 3.47pm.

An ambulance crew also attended but despite medical treatment, the man died at the scene.

A police spokesman said: “The area has been cordoned off while officers investigate the circumstances of the death, which is currently being treated as unexplained.”

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