Dawg Fight Documentary: Where to Watch and the Full Story
Dawg Fight is the most important documentary ever made about backyard fighting in America. Directed by Billy Corben, the filmmaker behind the acclaimed Cocaine Cowboys series, Dawg Fight follows the story of Dhafir "Dada 5000" Harris as he builds an underground fighting empire in the backyard of his mother's home in West Perrine, Florida -- one of the poorest and most violent neighborhoods in Miami-Dade County.
The film premiered on Netflix in 2015, six years after Corben and his crew first started filming. It has since become a cult favorite among combat sports fans and a reference point for anyone trying to understand the roots of American backyard fighting culture.
If you are looking for where to watch it, how it connects to the broader story of underground fighting, and why it still matters a decade after its release, this is the complete guide.
Where to Watch Dawg Fight in 2026
Dawg Fight is no longer available on Netflix, where it originally premiered. The film left the platform in May 2019. However, you can still watch it through the following options:
Digital Rental and Purchase
| Platform | Option | Approximate Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Google Play Movies | Rent or Buy | $2.99 - $9.99 |
| Amazon Prime Video | Rent or Buy | $2.99 - $9.99 |
| Apple TV / iTunes | Rent or Buy | $2.99 - $9.99 |
| Vudu | Rent or Buy | $2.99 - $9.99 |
| YouTube Movies | Rent or Buy | $2.99 - $9.99 |
Rental periods are typically 48 hours. Purchase gives you permanent access.
Free Options
The full documentary has appeared on free video platforms and social media over the years, though these uploads are unofficial and may be removed. Searching for "Dawg Fight full documentary" on YouTube or Bitchute will sometimes yield results, but availability is unpredictable.
Physical Media
DVD copies of Dawg Fight are available through Amazon and other retailers, though they can be difficult to find.
Availability Outside the United States
International availability varies by platform. Google Play and Apple TV tend to have the broadest international access. Check your local version of these platforms for availability and pricing.
The Full Story Behind the Documentary
The Setting: West Perrine, Florida
To understand Dawg Fight, you have to understand where it takes place. West Perrine is a suburban neighborhood in southwest Miami-Dade County. Over 73 percent of its residents are African-American, and more than a third are unemployed. Violent crime is a constant presence. The documentary does not shy away from these realities. It frames the backyard fights not as entertainment for its own sake, but as a product of the environment -- a way for young men in Perrine to channel aggression, settle disputes, earn respect, and potentially find a path out of poverty.
This is the same neighborhood that produced Kimbo Slice. The connections between Kimbo and Dada 5000 run deep, and Dawg Fight explores that relationship in detail.
The Main Character: Dada 5000
Dhafir Harris, known as Dada 5000, stands 6'3" and weighs around 270 pounds. He grew up blocks away from Kimbo Slice in Perrine, and the two men's paths were intertwined long before the documentary began filming.
Dada spent a year traveling the world as Kimbo's bodyguard. When Kimbo's career began to take off through viral fight videos, Dada had his own spectacular backyard fight debut. But according to the documentary, Kimbo's management buried the footage, fearing that Dada would overshadow their rising star.
That falling out became the catalyst for everything that followed. Dada left Kimbo's crew and made a decision that would define the rest of his life: he built a fighting ring in his mother's backyard and transformed himself into the promoter, matchmaker, and Don King of Perrine's underground fighting scene.
The Fights
The fights in Dawg Fight are not the sanitized, regulated affairs you see on pay-per-view. They are raw, bareknuckle brawls held on dirt and grass, surrounded by a crowd of neighbors, friends, and anyone who wandered in from the street. There are no weight classes, no gloves, and minimal rules. The only real regulation is Dada himself, who serves as the referee and the authority figure.
The documentary follows several fighters as they prepare for and compete in Dada's backyard events. Some of them are hardened street fighters. Others are young men with little fighting experience who see the backyard ring as their only shot at proving themselves. The fights are violent, messy, and deeply personal.
The Kimbo Connection
The shadow of Kimbo Slice hangs over every frame of the documentary. Dada's decision to start his own fighting operation was a direct response to being shut out of Kimbo's world. The rivalry between the two men simmers throughout the film, and it eventually boiled over into real life when they fought each other at Bellator 149 in February 2016, a fight that ended with both men hospitalized and that is widely regarded as one of the worst bouts in MMA history. For the full story, see our article on what happened to Kimbo Slice.
Dada's Ambition
What makes Dawg Fight more than just a fight documentary is Dada's stated mission. He did not frame the backyard fights as mere violence. He presented them as an alternative. In a neighborhood where young men were dying on the streets or going to prison, Dada offered them a ring. The fights gave participants structure, an outlet, and the possibility -- however slim -- of being noticed by a professional promotion and getting a contract.
Dada himself parlayed the documentary's exposure into a career in professional MMA. He signed with Bellator, fought on national television, and became a recognizable figure in combat sports. Whether his backyard operation actually saved lives or simply provided a controlled arena for violence that would have happened anyway is a question the documentary leaves for the viewer to answer.
The Filmmaker: Billy Corben
Billy Corben is a Miami-based filmmaker known for documentaries about the city's darker side. His Cocaine Cowboys series is widely regarded as one of the best drug trade documentaries ever made, and his work consistently explores the intersection of crime, culture, and community in South Florida.
Corben began filming Dawg Fight in 2009, spending six years documenting the Perrine fighting scene before the film was completed and acquired by Netflix. His production company, Rakontur, handled the production.
Corben's filmmaking style is direct and unflinching. He does not romanticize the violence, but he does not condemn it either. He lets the subjects tell their own stories and allows the viewer to draw conclusions about what the backyard fights mean -- for the fighters, for the community, and for the broader culture of underground combat sports.
Why Dawg Fight Still Matters
Dawg Fight was released in 2015, but its relevance has only grown. The backyard fighting scene it documented was a precursor to the explosion of organized underground fighting that has since become a global phenomenon.
It Predicted the Backyard Fighting Boom
When Dawg Fight was filmed, backyard fighting was a niche, largely stigmatized activity. Today, organizations like Streetbeefs, The Scrapyard, and dozens of others operate openly, with millions of YouTube subscribers and a degree of cultural acceptance that would have been unthinkable a decade ago. Dawg Fight captured the origins of that movement.
It Documented a Disappearing World
The specific world that Dawg Fight documented -- Dada's backyard ring in Perrine -- no longer exists in the same form. Dada moved on to professional fighting, and the neighborhood has changed. The documentary serves as a time capsule of a particular moment in underground fighting history.
It Connected Street Fighting to Professional MMA
The film's narrative arc -- from backyard brawls to professional contracts -- anticipated the pipeline that now exists between underground fighting and sanctioned promotions. Today, BKFC tryouts actively recruit fighters from amateur and underground backgrounds. That pathway was barely visible when Corben started filming.
Critical Reception
Dawg Fight holds a 6.3 rating on IMDb and has generally favorable reviews. Critics praised Corben's ability to humanize his subjects and the documentary's unflinching look at the socioeconomic conditions that produce underground fighting. Some reviewers criticized the film for not taking a stronger moral stance on the violence, but most acknowledged that Corben's neutral approach was a deliberate artistic choice that makes the film more powerful.
The Orlando Weekly described it as "the insane documentary about Florida backyard fighting," which captures both the film's intensity and its specific cultural context.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Dawg Fight on Netflix?
No. Dawg Fight was available on Netflix from 2015 to May 2019. It is no longer on the platform.
Is Dawg Fight based on a true story?
Yes. Dawg Fight is a documentary that follows real people and real events. Dada 5000 and all the fighters featured in the film are real, and the fights depicted actually took place.
Is Dada 5000 still fighting?
Dada 5000 has largely retired from professional fighting. His last major bout was the infamous fight against Kimbo Slice at Bellator 149 in 2016, after which he was hospitalized with kidney failure and cardiac arrest.
Where was Dawg Fight filmed?
The documentary was filmed primarily in West Perrine, Florida, a neighborhood in southwest Miami-Dade County. The backyard fighting ring was located at Dada 5000's mother's home.