Congratulations goes out to Kendall “Da Spyder” Grove in defeating former UFC Middleweight Champion Evan Tanner last night in the Ultimate Fighter Finale. Born and raised on Maui, Kendall won The Ultimate Fighter series, but has recently lost two straight fights in Patrick Cote and Jorge Rivera. Evan Tanner was in a similar position with a comeback fight where he lost to a tough Yushin Okami. Both were looking to come back hungry as ever, since both are coming off losses.

To Kendall, this was a make it or break it fight. After training out of Vegas for some time, he went back to the islands, particularly BJ Penn’s MMA in Hilo Hawaii where he trained with BJ and Rudy Valentino. Here, he felt that he was at his best, and boy, did he give it to Evan Tanner. I was able to see a very confident Kendall, with much improved striking and good defense. His suspect chin was tested, but he weathered the storm and was not in trouble at any point. He even threw two jumping knees when Evan tried to perform a single leg takedown, which should definitely be in the highlight reels sometime sooner than later.

Kendall won a decision, with one judge scoring Evan winning two rounds out of three, while the other two judges gave all three rounds to Kendall, and even giving Kendall a 10-8 in one of the rounds due to a thorough beating of Evan. I till tip my hats off to Evan because he showed a lot of heart and did not give up, but Kendall was too much for him.

Again, congratulations to Kendall! With BJ and Kendall back in the mix, Hawaii is definitely putting Hawaii back on the map!

On May 26th, my girlfriend and I went to Las Vegas to watch and support Hawaii’s own BJ Penn, defend his UFC Lightweight Championship belt against Sean Sherk. It was a memorable event, and to watch how many people flew over to support the champ amazed me.

Now you can see BJ Penn next Saturday, on June 26, at Barnes and Nobles in Ala Moana. He will do a signing at 10am. He will probably sign his book “Mixed Martial Arts: The Book of Knowledge”, where he showcases his techniques that he uses in his UFC fights. I own this book, and I have to say it is the best MMA book I have ever read. It is very comprehensive with lots of pictures at different angles, and with very detailed explanations. I know I will bring my book for him to sign on Saturday.

Make sure you make it out to show your support if you are a fan of MMA, and bring a camera! I know I will! See you there!

All of you MMA (mixed martial arts) fans out there, get ready, as next weekend there will be a MMA Expo at the Blaisdell! What is it? It’s an expo that will include local fighters like BJ Penn and Niko Vitale, MMA schools, MMA stores, etc. There will be over 200 MMA and fitness exhibitors combined. This is definitely one of the largest expo’s I’ve heard of here in Hawaii, and dedicated to MMA.

This is also a good chance to check out the seminars, demonstrations, and competitions if you are thinking of being an active MMA athlete. They will also have a jiu-jitsu tournament with and without gi’s. Big names will show up including BJ Penn and his students, UFC’s Kendall Grove, Jeff Monson, Ross Tha Boss, and Egan Inoue. Several clothing lines are also attending such as Throwdown, Fokai, Da Hui, and Quiksilver, just to name a few.

The expo will be held at the Blaisdell Exhibition Hall on June 27, 28, and 29. Admission will cost $7 for adults, $5 for military, $3 for kids 7-12 years old, and kids under 6 is free. You can also go to the entire 3 day event for $18, in case you want to visit each day for their individual events.

Stop by and support the first ever MMA Expo in Hawaii!