The Tribune

By RENALDO DORSETT

Tribune Sports Reporter

rdorsett@tribunemedia.net

A FIGHT years in the making finally came to fruition at Bellator 149 on Saturday night and Bahamian mixed martial artist Kevin “Kimbo Slice” Ferguson emerged as the winner in a clash of heavyweight titans.

Slice scored a third-round knockout over longtime rival Dhafir Dada 5000 Harris as the co-main event on the card at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas.

Most mixed martial arts (MMA) fans expected a slugfest between two heated rivals, but instead, the match produced a pair of exhausted fighters trading strikes for three rounds before Slice was able to outlast Harris. A punch from an exhausted Slice forced Harris to the mat at the 1 minute 32 second mark in the third as he improved his win-loss record to 6-2. Harris fell to 2-1.

“I wish it could have been a little different,” Slice said as he donned a mouthguard covered in a print of the Bahamian flag.

“But hard work and the victory was ours.”

Both fighters sloppily traded strikes and even took the fight to the ground a few times with takedowns, however, they spent much of the time leaning on each other or embraced in an effort to catch their breath. Slice connected with a number of lumbering haymakers as Harris was so tired, he was unable to raise his arms in defence. As he stumbled across the ring and collapsed to the mat, the crowd at the Toyota Center reigned down a chorous of boos and the fight drew the ire of many fans and MMA enthusiasts on social media.

Immediately following the fight, Harris was hospitalised and remains in stable condition. He was in critical condition overnight and in addition to other health issues, experienced a fracture to his orbital bone (eye socket).

The tale of the tape had given the edge to Harris at 6ft 4in and 265lbs while Slice stood two inches shorter and 29lbs lighter.

According to a statement released by the Harris family, and distributed by Bellator, Harris suffered from “extremely high levels of potassium in his blood, which led to severe dehydration, fatigue and renal failure”.

The statement also noted that Harris’ high potassium levels were suggested to be the result of losing nearly 40lbs in preparation for the bout. The maximum weight at heavyweight is 265lbs.

Both fighters were veterans of the underground fight scene in Miami and Harris worked as security for Slice once his bare knuckle brawls went viral. Their relationship has since soured since Slice rose to international prominence and Harris has attempted to publicise his own bare knuckle boxing startup promotion.

Slice defeated Shamrock at Bellator 138 last June in one of the highest-rated shows for the promotion. At the “Unfinished Business” card on Spike TV, 2.1 million viewers tuned in to watch Slice escape an early rear-naked choke hold to defeat Shamrock by knockout at the 2min 22sec mark in the first round.

Bellator’s previous highest viewership came in November, when 1.8 million viewers tuned in to see Tito Ortiz defeat Stephan Bonnar at Bellator 131.

Slice became an Internet sensation when his series of street fights became popular on Youtube.com. He converted a career as a backyard street fighter into becoming one of the most sought after fighters in mixed martial arts history.

His career as an MMA fighter in the Ultimate Fighting Championship was short lived however, limited to just two fights. After the brief but much-hyped stint in the world of MMA, Slice looked to capitalise again on his notoriety, with an attempt at professional wrestling. He then ventured in professional boxing in 2010 and he posted a 7-0 win-loss record up to 2013 before it was announced on January 16, 2015 that he had signed to Bellator MMA.

BELLATOR 149 RESULTS

Royce Gracie def. Ken Shamrock via first-round TKO (2:22)

Kimbo Slice def. Dada 5000 via third-round TKO (1:32)

Derek Campos def. Melvin Guillard via second-round TKO (0:32)

Linton Vassell def. Emanuel Newton via unanimous decision (30-26, 29-27, 29-27)

Emanuel Sanchez def. Daniel Pineda via split decision (28-29, 29-27, 29-28)

Undercard

Justin Wren def. Juan Torres via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Jeremy Mahon def. Davis Sylvester via TKO (R3, 4:22)

CJ Hancock def. Ruben Esparsa via submission (rear-naked choke) (R3, 1:26)

Adrian Yanez vs. Ryan Hollis via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Isaac Villanueva def. Richard Knepp via knockout (R1, 0:42)

Mike Trinh def. Angel Zamora via submission (armbar) (R1, 3:49)

Jason Langellier def. Anthony Ivy via submission (anaconda choke) (R1, 2:09)

Manny Lozoya def. Jacob Norsworthy via submission (guillotine) (R1, 2:33)