Badr Hari facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Badr Hari |
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![]() Hari in 2016
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Born | Badr Hari 8 December 1984 Amsterdam, Netherlands |
Other names | The Golden Boy Bad Boy |
Height | 198 cm (6 ft 6 in) |
Weight | 115 kg (254 lb) |
Division | Heavyweight |
Reach | 213 cm (84 in) |
Style | Kickboxing, Muay Thai |
Stance | Orthodox |
Fighting out of | Morocco |
Team | SB Gym (2021–2022) Mike's Gym (2005–2021, 2023–present) Chakuriki Gym (2000–2005) |
Trainer | Said El Badaoui (2021–2022) Mike Passenier (2005–2021, 2023–present) Thom Harinck (2000–2005) |
Years active | 2000–present (Kickboxing) 2002 (MMA) |
Kickboxing record | |
Total | 126 |
Wins | 106 |
By knockout | 92 |
Losses | 17 |
By knockout | 14 |
No contests | 3 |
Mixed martial arts record | |
Total | 1 |
Wins | 0 |
Losses | 1 |
By submission | 1 |
last updated on: 09 September 2023
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Badr Hari (born on December 8, 1984) is a professional kickboxer and Muay Thai fighter from Morocco and the Netherlands. He was born in Amsterdam. Hari started his professional kickboxing journey in 2000. He quickly became famous for his strong and exciting fighting style.
In 2002, he won the WPKL Dutch Muay Thai championship. He also became the champion of The Eight Tournament in Muay Thai. In 2005, he joined K-1, a big kickboxing organization. He won his first K-1 fight by knockout. In 2007, he became the K-1 Heavyweight World Champion. He won this title by knocking out Yusuke Fujimoto in just 56 seconds. He defended his title two times. But he lost it in 2008 by being disqualified.
In 2009, Hari reached the final of the K-1 World Grand Prix for the second time. That same year, he also became the It's Showtime Heavyweight World Champion. He defended this title once. He then lost it in May 2010 by disqualification. In 2014, he won the GFC Fight Series 1 Heavyweight Tournament Championship. He won by technical knockout in the first round. In 2016, he made his Glory debut against champion Rico Verhoeven. He lost this fight by technical knockout due to an arm injury.
Many people think Badr Hari is one of the best kickboxers ever.
Contents
Early Life and Training
Hari was born and grew up in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. His parents are from the Houara tribe in Morocco. They moved to the Netherlands before he was born. Hari started learning kickboxing when he was seven years old. His first coach was Mousid Akamrane, a former World Champion.
As a teenager, he trained at the Sitan Gym. Later, he joined the famous Chakuriki Gym run by Thom Harinck. Hari used to fight under the Dutch flag. But after a fight in 2005, he decided to represent Morocco. This happened after the audience booed him. He then started working with a new coach, Mike Passenier.
Kickboxing Career
Starting Out
Hari's father sent him to kickboxing classes to help him defend himself from bullies. People quickly saw that he was a natural talent. By age 11, he was fighting regularly as a junior. In his teenage years, he became well-known in Amsterdam.
By age 18, he had 50 amateur fights. He was ready for professional fights. A year later, he fought in front of thousands of people at the Johan Cruijf Arena. This is the biggest soccer stadium in the Netherlands. He lost that fight, but he earned respect for his courage.
Road to K-1 Fame
Hari became famous after two fights against Stefan Leko in 2005. Their first fight was at an It's Showtime 2005 event. Hari was knocked out quickly by Leko.
In November 2005, Hari joined the K-1 World Grand Prix 2005 tournament. He was a reserve fighter and faced Leko again. This time, Hari knocked out Leko with a spinning kick. After the fight, Hari helped Leko up.
K-1 New Zealand 2006
In 2006, Badr Hari fought in New Zealand. His opponent was Peter "The Chief" Graham. Hari was knocked out by Graham's special "Rolling Thunder" move.
Return to K-1
Hari returned to K-1 later in 2006. He fought Ruslan Karaev in Japan. Karaev knocked Hari out in the first round. Six months later, Hari would get a chance to fight Karaev again.
Hari then won a fight against Paul Slowinski. He also fought Nicholas Pettas and won by TKO. Hari got his revenge against Karaev in 2007. He knocked out Karaev in the second round. This win helped him qualify for the first K-1 heavyweight title match.
K-1 Heavyweight Champion
On April 28, 2007, Hari fought Yusuke Fujimoto for the new K-1 Heavyweight belt. Hari won the fight in just 56 seconds with a kick to the chin. He became the first ever K-1 Heavyweight champion.
Hari then got his chance to get revenge against Peter Graham. Graham had broken Hari's jaw in 2006. Hari won this fight by decision. After the match, they seemed to make up.
In September 2007, Hari beat Doug Viney by knockout. This win qualified him for his first K-1 World Grand Prix Final. However, he lost in the quarter-finals to Remy Bonjasky.
2008 Fights
All of Hari's wins in 2008 were by knockouts. He beat Ray Sefo, Glaube Feitosa, and Domagoj Ostojic. He also won against Hong Man Choi to qualify for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 Final.

In the K-1 Grand Prix quarterfinals, Hari defeated Peter Aerts. In the semi-final, he knocked out Errol Zimmerman. This led him to his first K-1 Final against Remy Bonjasky. Hari was disqualified in the second round for kicking Bonjasky while he was down. Bonjasky was declared the K-1 World Grand Prix 2008 champion. K-1 took away Hari's heavyweight title and prize money.
Hari then fought MMA fighter Alistair Overeem in a K-1 rules match. Hari lost the fight by knockout in the first round.
2009 Fights
In May 2009, Hari fought Semmy Schilt for the new It's Showtime World Heavyweight title. Hari was very aggressive and knocked Schilt down twice. The fight was stopped in just 45 seconds, and Hari won the title.
In September 2009, Hari knocked out Zabit Samedov in the first round. In the K-1 World Grand Prix Final, Hari quickly knocked out Ruslan Karaev and Alistair Overeem. But in the final, he lost to Semmy Schilt by knockout.
2010 Fights
Hari's first fight in 2010 was in the Czech Republic. He defended his Showtime heavyweight title by knocking out Mourad Bouzidi. In April, Hari defeated Alexey Ignashov. This was his first win in three years that wasn't a knockout.
It's Showtime 2010 Amsterdam
Hari defended his Showtime title against Hesdy Gerges. The fight took place in Amsterdam. Hari controlled most of the first round. In the second round, Hari knocked Gerges down. But as Gerges was getting up, Hari kicked him in the face. Hari was disqualified again. Gerges became the new "Its Showtime" Heavyweight champion.
2011 and 2012 Fights
After the Gerges fight, Hari took a year off. He returned in May 2011 and won by TKO in the first round against Gregory Tony.
In January 2012, Hari faced Gökhan Saki. He won by TKO in the first round after knocking Saki down three times. In May 2012, Hari won another fight by decision. He was supposed to fight in the K-1 World Grand Prix Final in December. However, he could not participate due to personal issues.
2013 and 2014 Fights
In March 2013, Hari fought Zabit Samedov again. He won by decision but injured his foot. He had to leave the tournament. Hari fought Samedov a third time in May 2013 and lost by knockout. In November 2013, Hari won against Alexey Ignashov by decision.
In May 2014, Hari won a four-man tournament in Dubai. He knocked out Stefan Leko in the semi-finals. He then won by TKO against Peter Graham in the final. He reportedly won a large prize for this tournament.
2016 to Present
Hari made his Glory debut against champion Rico Verhoeven in December 2016. Hari seemed to be winning the first round. But in the second round, Verhoeven landed a knee that broke Hari's arm. Hari could not continue, so Verhoeven won by TKO.
On March 3, 2018, Hari fought Hesdy Gerges again. Hari won the fight by decision. However, it was later found that both fighters had used banned substances. As a result, the fight was changed to a "No Contest," and both fighters were suspended. Hari received a 19-month suspension.
Hari challenged Rico Verhoeven for the Glory Heavyweight Championship in December 2019. This fight took place in front of 30,000 fans. Hari knocked Verhoeven down twice. But in the third round, Hari broke his ankle from a missed kick. He could not continue, and Verhoeven won by TKO. This rematch was very popular, with 3.5 million viewers in the Netherlands.
On December 19, 2020, Hari fought Benjamin Adegbuyi. This fight was to decide who would challenge for the Glory Heavyweight Championship. Hari lost the fight by knockout in the third round.
On September 4, 2021, Hari faced Arkadiusz Wrzosek. Hari knocked Wrzosek down three times in the first round. But in the second round, Wrzosek landed a head kick that knocked Hari out.
Hari and Wrzosek had a rematch in March 2022. But the fight was stopped after the second round due to problems in the audience. It was declared a "No Contest."
Hari fought Alistair Overeem in October 2022. Hari lost the fight. However, Overeem later failed a drug test. So, the fight was changed to a "No Contest." Hari said he was thinking about retiring from kickboxing.
Hari was supposed to fight James McSweeney in September 2023. But Hari chose not to fight out of respect for an earthquake in his home country. Hari then faced Uku Jürjendal in October 2023. Hari lost the fight by TKO after being knocked down four times.
Personal Life
Hari is married to Daphne Romani. They have four daughters and one son.
In 2007, Hari released a hip-hop song with Dutch-Moroccan rapper Appa. The song was called "Stap Maar In De Ring" ("Just Step Into The Ring").
Championships and Accomplishments
- K-1
- 2007-2008 K-1 Heavyweight Champion
- One successful title defense
- 2008 K-1 World Grand Prix runner-up
- 2009 K-1 World Grand Prix runner-up
- 2007-2008 K-1 Heavyweight Champion
- It's Showtime
- 2009-2010 It's Showtime Heavyweight Champion
- One successful title defense
- 2009-2010 It's Showtime Heavyweight Champion
- GLORY
- 2020 Fight of the Year vs. Benjamin Adegbuyi at Glory 76: Rotterdam
- GFC
- 2014 Fight Series 1 Heavyweight Tournament Champion
- Muay Thai
- 2002 WPKL Dutch Muay Thai Champion
- 2002 The Eight Tournament Winner
- 2003 M-1 Heavyweight Tournament runner-up
Images for kids
See also
In Spanish: Badr Hari para niños
- Cristiano Ronaldo
- List of male kickboxers
- List of K-1 champions
- List of It's Showtime champions