Announced 'Dada 5000' bare-knuckle fight scrapped by Florida commission
(Editor’s note: Story has been updated to reflect the Florida commission shutting down ‘Dada 5000’s’ return.)
On the same day ‘Dada 5000’s’ return to combat sports was announced, it was swiftly canceled.
Bare-knuckle boxing organization BYB Extreme, which was co-founded by “Dada 5000” (real name Dhafir Harris), announced on Monday that “Dada 5000” would meet Matt Strickland in the trigon on Nov. 19 to headline “BYB 13: Tampa Brawl for it All” at the Florida State Fairgrounds.
Hours later, a Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation official told MMA Fighting that the fight was off.
“Dhafir Harris is currently indefinitely suspended by the Texas Athletic Commission. Mr. Harris will not be competing at the event in November,” commission representatives said.
“Dada 5000’s” suspension in Texas stems from the last time he fought in February 2016, a wild and ugly fight against Kimbo Slice at Bellator 149 in which both men looked exhausted before Slice won by third-round TKO. Afterward, “Dada 5000” was rushed to the hospital and suffered a cardiac arrest.
At 45, “Dada 5000” said he wanted to fight again because he felt he had “a lot left inside” of him.
“I have a lot left inside of me and can be a breath of fresh air to what has become a very stale fight game,” he said in a statement. “I’m one of the last of that original breed of modern mixed martial artists. I’m recognizable, and people identify with what they are familiar with. I want to do this for the fans as much as for myself.”
As it turns out, he won’t.
“Dada 5000,” who made a name for himself as a street fighter, is 2-0 in MMA competition.