Founder of clothing firm killed in Ferrari crash
Driver of Porsche, seen fleeing by police, is arrested.
By SERENA MARIA DANIELS, SARA FAY, CARLOS ARIAS and DOUG IRVING
THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Comments 364 | Recommend 41

NEWPORT BEACH — A larger-than-life character who called himself “Mask” and who helped create a mixed-martial-arts empire from the back of a van died early Wednesday when the Ferrari he was driving crashed into a light pole.

Charles Lewis Jr., 45, of Huntington Beach, the co-founder of a $100 million company called TapouT, was declared dead at the scene. The impact ripped the car in half and sent his passenger, an unidentified woman, to the hospital.

Police arrested the driver of another car, a white 1977 Porsche, on suspicion of gross vehicular manslaughter while intoxicated. An on-duty officer reported seeing that driver, Jeffrey David Kirby, 51, of Costa Mesa, flee the scene after his Porsche was involved in the crash.

Kirby has a history of driving violations, including a 2002 conviction for driving under the influence, court and Department of Motor Vehicle records show. He was being held in lieu of $2 million bail.

The police officer who witnessed the crash reported seeing the Porsche driving next to the Ferrari on Jamboree Road, near Eastbluff Drive, according to the Newport Beach Police Department. The two cars appeared to spin out of control, possibly after colliding, police said.

The Ferrari jumped the curb and then slammed into the light pole. The officer reported seeing the Porsche stop briefly, and then drive away, police said.

Police found a white Porsche with moderate collision damage a few blocks away, and stopped a man and woman who were walking away from it. They later identified the man as Kirby. They arrested his passenger, Lynn Marie Nabozny, 32, of Newport Beach, on suspicion of public intoxication; she was later released.

Skid marks on the road pointed the way to the crash site. The Ferrari – a 2004 Modena likely worth around $140,000 – was cut in two, its rear coming to rest more than 30 feet away from its front. The unidentified woman who was riding in it as a passenger was thrown from the car; her condition was not known late Wednesday, but police described her as stable.

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Police were still investigating the cause of the crash late Wednesday. A stretch of southbound Jamboree Road was closed for much of the day.

The county coroner's office confirmed late Wednesday that the victim was Lewis and listed his city of residence as Huntington Beach.

“It is with heavy hearts and great sadness that we must regretfully confirm the passing of our beloved friend, brother and co-founder Charles ‘Mask' Lewis,” read a statement issued by TapouT. “Many thanks to all for the outpouring of blessings.”

Lewis founded TapouT in the late 1990s with a friend, Dan Caldwell, better known as Punkass. They lived out of a van, following mixed martial arts fights around California, hawking their T-shirts and fight gear.

Lewis was a former Marine and had worked for the San Bernardino Sheriff's Department, according to Jeff Sherwood, a friend and founder of a popular mixed martial-arts Web site. Lewis had a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu but never entered the ring as a professional mixed martial arts fighter, Sherwood said.

Instead, he designed and marketed shoes, T-shirts, shorts – and sold an appreciation for the caged-fight combat of mixed martial arts. He put on face paint and styled himself “Mask,” a marketing move that TapouT would later compare to the white-faced weirdness of rock band Kiss.

The company's Web site describes him as “the militant face responsible for the TapouT brand and lifestyle” and as a “cultural revolutionary.” It warns: “You'll definitely never catch him off guard – instead, Mask will prey on you.”

But Lewis showed a gentler side in a message to visitors on the site. “Life is full of influences,” he wrote. “It's your application that sets you apart.”

“Just take a step towards your belief daily,” he wrote, “fearlessly, wholeheartedly, digging and dreaming within yourself, believing that as you push on through sacrifice, you will one day stand alone on top of a hill that you created that now encourages and inspires others to chase their dream.”

He signed the message, “Mask.”

His fortunes – and those of the company he helped found – rose with the popularity of Mixed Martial Arts. TapouT's press releases now describe it as a $100 million company that operates “without concern for competition because (it's) been at the forefront of Mixed Martial Arts since its inception.”

The company, based in San Bernardino, sponsors Mixed Martial Arts fighters – paying out six-figure sums. The sports channel Versus produced a reality series for two seasons that followed the TapouT crew as they searched for fighters to sponsor.

Company officials did not return phone calls seeking comment Wednesday. But co-founder Dan Caldwell – “Punkass” – posted a note on his blog late in the day. “To my best friend in the world,” he wrote, “you'll be forever missed, but always remembered. RIP Mask.”