Badr Hari
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| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Realname | Badr Hari |
| Nickname | The Golden Boy |
| Height | 1.97 m (6 ft 6 in) |
| Weight | 94 kg (207 lb) |
| Nationality |   Dutch,Moroccon |
| Birth date | December 8, 1984 |
| Birth place | Netherlands |
| Style | Muay thai |
| Team | Mike's Gym |
| Kickboxing Record | |
| Total fights | 64 |
| Wins | 58 |
| Wins by KO | 48 |
| Losses | 5 |
| Draws | 1 |
Badr "The Golden Boy" Hari (born December 8, 1984) is one of the biggest talents in the Super Heavyweight kickboxing. After making his name in the Dutch rings, he was signed by K-1 and in his k-1 debut he knocked out Stefan Leko with a vicious round kick to the head in a reserve fight at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2005.
[edit] Biography
Badr Hari started to train kickboxing at the age of seven under the guidance of former World Champion Mousid Akamrane. As a teenager he trained under Mohammed Ait Hassou at Sitan Gym. When Sitan Gym moved from Amsterdam to Rotterdam Badr switched over to the world famous Chakuriki gym with Thom Harinck. Under Harinck Hari developed himself as one of the greatest talents of Holland. Harinck even stated that "Hari had more talent than Peter Aerts and Branko Cikatic together".
Hari suffered only one loss while being trained by Thom Harinck: in 2003 he replaced Melvin Manhoef against the K-1 Superstar Alexey Ignashov on a few days notice. Hari, who was outweighed by more than 18 KGs, did fairly well but was knocked out in the third round by a punch on the plexus. Nevertheless Hari won a lot of respect by stepping up at such an opponent under these circumstances.
Other notable wins at that time were Errol Paris, Antoni Hardonck, Aziz Katthou and Gary Turner. In January 2005 Hari left the Chakuriki gym to sign a contract with promotor Simon Rutz and became a fighter in the It's Showtime team. After a few months of training at Amsterdam's famous Mejiro Gym he returned to Thom Harinck but left him again after a few weeks. Badr Hari is currently coached by Mike Passenier of Mike's Gym who also trains Joeri "The Shark" Mes, Bjorn "The Rock" Breggy and "Marvellous" Melvin Manhoef.
Hari, who is infamous for his long entrances to the ring and his big mouth, was matched against Stefan Leko for the It's Showtime event later that year. Leko was on a dead track, losing all his fights under MMA rules with the Pride organisation. For Hari it was a big opportunity to show his strength and try to make it into K-1 circuit. The former K-1 superstar Leko also saw an opportunity to make his K-1 comeback. The fight was being hyped for several months along with a lot of trash talking. Leko, was extremely confident saying it wouldnt last long.
Before the actual fight started, Hari irritated his opponent with his trademark entrance. His entrance lasted longer than the fight itself. After an aggressive start, Badr Hari was winded by a spinning back kick to the liver, Stefan Leko also looked to be spitting on Hari after the fight was over while Hari was on the floor.
Hari got his chance for revenge. Manager Simon Rutz got him a deal with K-1 to fight at the K-1 World Grand Prix 2005 as a reserve fighter against Stefan Leko. Hari didn't seem to have lost his confidence and got his ultimate revenge. He knocked out Leko by a high spinning back kick to the jaw.
Although it seemed Leko and Hari had already created bad blood and an instant classic rivalry, Hari helped his opponent up and escorted the dazed German to the corner. Hari made himself a name that night with one of the scariest knockouts of that year.
While being scheduled for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2006 in Holland on May 13th 2006, Hari was a last minute replacement for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2006 in New-Zealand. His opponent in the first round was Australian Peter "The Chief" Graham. During the press-conference Hari once again showed his bad boy image by mocking and insulting Graham and later on even started a brawl. The next day Graham answered this lack of respect with a spectacular knockout. In the last ticking seconds of the last round Graham catched him with his trademark, "the rolling thunder". Hari broke his jaw on multiple places.
After receiving the most votes by fight fans all over the world, Badr Hari was offered a wildcard at K-1 World GP Final Elimination 2006 against a young Russian kickboxer Ruslan Karaev. He lost the fight by 1 Round KO by a controversial referee stoppage.
He fought on undercard at the K-1 World GP 2006 Finals at the Tokyo Dome against Paul Slowinski and won the fight by unanimous decision.
Badr Hari got his revenge on Ruslan Karaev as well. After receiving an 8 count after a hook from Karaev, Karaev ran forward with the intention of finishing the job. However, he was knocked out cold by Badr Hari who qualified himself for a K-1 world title fight later this year.
[edit] Titles
- Dutch Muay Thai Champion
