MMA Hall of Fame: Charles “Mask” Lewis Jr.

Charles Lewis Jr., also known as “Mask”, is a promoter, entertainer and the co-founder of TapouT. He founded the TapouT clothing line in 1997, with his friends “Skyskrape” and “Punkass”. Over the decades, the apparel business that they’ve started from the back of their Mustang became a multi-million dollar company.

Born on June 23, 1963, Charles Lewis Jr. was known as “Mask” because of the stripes of face paint he frequently wore. In 2007, he and his friends starred in a reality TV series, entitle TapouT, on Versus. The show followed up and coming martial arts fighters.

On March 11, 2009, the MMA community was shocked by a sad news, as Mask died in a high-speed car crash. His Ferrari 360 Modena collided with Jeffrey David Kirby’s 1977 Porsche before hitting a cement light pole in Newport Beach, California. The TapouT co-founder was declared dead at the scene.

Jeffrey David Kirby was arrested for alcohol-related gross vehicular manslaughter. It was in December of 2010 that the drunk driver was found guilty of the crime, and was sentenced for 13 years in prison.

As a tribute for Charles Lewis Jr.’s contributions to the MMA industry, he was posthumously inducted into the UFC Hall of Fame during the UFC 100 Fan Expo. Mask was the first and only non-fighter to enter the UFC Hall of Fame.