Recently in the  news, 2 MMA/Bar Knuckle street fighters were hospitalized after a Bellator broadcast event. One was the street fighter known as Dada 5000. The other was the internet sensation Kimbo Slice. Both were products of the Miami bare-knuckle fight scene. Dafir (Dada) Harris was a known from the documentary Dawg Fight. He also was in the beginning stages of his MMA career. Kimbo was a street fighting legend who grew to popularity because of his bare knuckle brawls on YouTube. While both enjoyed varying degrees of success, they were on a collision course with each other that would leave both men damaged and one eventually succumbing to death.

Though neither fighter was known for his cardio-conditioning, preparing for the fight was probably a grueling process with pushed them to their limits. However, it wasn’t enough. Not only that but, the use of performance enhancing drugs played a role in the fight and the eventual death of one of the fighters.

Kimbo Slice, the underground street legend was popped for steroids in the previous fight with Ken Shamrock for elevated testosterone-to-epiteststerone levels and for the steroid nandrolone.

Months later, Kimbo would go into the hospital and need a heart transplant. But before he could get one, he passed away. Just a matter of weeks previous to the death of Kimbo Slice, his opponent Dafir “Dada 5000” Harris was hospitalized after his fight with Kimbo on a Bellator card. He suffered renal failure when his kidneys stopped. Moreover, his heart stopped after the fight and he was in critical condition.

What Does This Mean?

I personally believe that where there is smoke there is fire. That being said, if Kimbo was popped for a banned substance then the chances are that he was using a PED for more than that particular instance. In other words, the use of nandrolone was not a one-time thing. Moreover, there is a possibility that steroid use may have played a role in his medical problems. I also believe that the fight camps or trainers around Kimbo, played a role in his use of PEDs.

As far as Dada 5000 goes, he was just not prepared for the cardiovascular reality of MMA and pushed himself past his limit in an attempt to win his fight with Kimbo. This is, in part, what led up to pushing his body to the point of no return. The reality is that the fight game is grueling. People should not trivialize the seriousness of stepping into a cage to fight. When you sign the dotted line, you may not walk away from this game alive.

Best wishes to the Harris family.

RIP Kimbo Slice