Thursday, April 7

Dada 5000: 'I Died' in the Cage During Bellator Fight with Kimbo Slice

Dhafir Harris, better known as MMA fighter Dada 5000, was clinically dead at some point during his February fight with Kimbo Slice at Bellator 149.

That's according to Dada himself, who wrote in a Wednesday afternoon post on his Instagram account that he suffered kidney failure and two heart attacks while in the cage with Slice. Harris soon deleted the post, but not before savvy tweeters could capture it:

"Yes I did have kidney failure during the fight I also had two heart attacks which I did code aka died during the fight," the post read in part. "Glory to the Most High which saw favor in me to bring me back."

In the co-main event of the Feb. 19 Bellator card, Slice (real name Kevin Ferguson), 42, scored a third-round TKO of Harris, 38. Like Slice, Dada gained viral fame as a kingpin of Miami's underground street-fighting scene, some installments of which made their way to YouTube.

The Slice-Dada fight drew widespread Internet laughter and criticism as one of the worst in MMA history, culminating when Dada collapsed to the mat in the third round, seemingly from exhaustion and without Slice having touched him. The bout was nevertheless ruled a TKO win for Slice.

The laughter of the national television audience presumably faded as Dada, unable to stand under his own power, was removed from the cage on a stretcher and taken to a local hospital.

Soon after, Dada's camp released a statement saying he had experienced "renal failure" from his pre-fight weight loss, and that he was "recovering nicely."

The one-day hospital stay turned into one week, and Bleacher Report's Jeremy Botter reported that Harris' heart had stopped and that he was in critical condition. Harris finally left the hospital March 1.

Dada is 2-1 as a pro MMA fighter. His future in fighting is unclear, but it stands to reason that most, if not all, promotions will think twice before signing Harris to compete again.

For his part, Harris sounded upbeat in his Instagram post Wednesday, writing that he was recovering and will attempt to return to fighting.

"Thank you all for your prayers and support," the post read. "I will make a full recovery and will be back bigger, faster and stronger than ever before that much you can count on!!!"

Read more MMA news on BleacherReport.com

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