Tag: Kai Kamaka III

Kai Kamaka III credits cousin Ray Cooper III for big-time PFL influence

Kai Kamaka III got tossed into the deep end of the pool for his PFL debut Friday, but had a confidence boost thanks a family bond.

CHICAGO – [autotag]Kai Kamaka III[/autotag] got tossed into the deep end of the pool for his PFL debut Friday, but had a confidence boost thanks a family bond.

Kamaka (13-5-1) outworked Bubba Jenkins (21-8) for a unanimous decision at the PFL’s third and final event of the first half of the 2024 regular season in Chicago. The win gave Kamaka 3 points in the featherweight standings.

After the fight, Kamaka, a Bellator transfer from Hawaii who now has won four of his past five, said advice from his cousin, [autotag]Ray Cooper III[/autotag], helped ahead of his PFL debut. Cooper is a two-time $1 million PFL winner at welterweight.

“I was kind of teary-eyed this morning,” Kamaka told MMA Junkie and other reporters after his win over Jenkins. “My cousin Ray surprised me for my fight, and then locking eyes with him right before the fight started – I mean, just full circle. Five years ago, I was following him around this league from the East Coast.

“I wish we both could have been competing tonight, but I think it was more of a blessing that he wasn’t because I think I would have been even more nervous. But to see him today, and then during the fight, him giving me assurance, he lit more of a fire under me, especially between that second and third round, seeing him standing up and then, you know, locking eyes with him again – he just brings a different fire to me.”

Kamaka’s 3 points in the featherweight standings have him in a three-way tie behind Brendan Loughnane and Gabriel Braga, who got first-round finishes for 6 points.

A win for Kamaka against whoever he’s matched up against in the second round in late June will be critical to make the four-man postseason, and a finish might be even more important, though the 29-year-old said he’s just concerned about getting a ‘W’ and not gunning for a finish.

“The season picks up from here,” Kamaka said. “It’s whoever can stay healthy, whoever can have the strong mind and keep going. But I don’t have bad weight cuts. I don’t need too much time to rest. I heal my body up good and I’m a student of the game. The tournament picks up now.

“I’m just trying to frickin’ win fights. I keep winning, you move on. The win, then the finish, that’s all for PFL – but I’ve got to make my money and I’ve got to keep winning.”

Welterweights fought on the card with Kamaka’s featherweight division Friday at Wintrust Arena, but Cooper wasn’t in the field. He won the welterweight season in 2019, then again in 2021. In 2022, he missed weight for his first bout of the season and despite a 24-second KO in his second fight, missed the playoffs.

Cooper moved up to middleweight in 2023, but dropped a decision to UFC vet Derek Brunson, and against Bellator welterweight champion Jason Jackson earlier this year, he lost a catchweight fight. But despite his current hurdles, Cooper remains a steadfast influence in Kamaka’s career.

“He was there in my UFC debut,” Kamaka said. “He probably pulled me through to that one, too. The turning points in my career, if it wasn’t for him doing so well in the PFL, I don’t even think I’d be anywhere in my career.

“After he was doing well, he won the championship, that’s when my career started to come around because during his camps, I’m right there with him on everything. Seeing him win, I knew I was doing everything right, and that helped turn my career around. That just pushed me. That just gave me assurance that I was doing the right things.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for PFL 2024, Week 3.

Kai Kamaka digging transition to PFL’s season format

Apart from a rough patch when he was in the UFC, Kai Kamaka has been riding high most of his career.

Apart from a rough patch when he was in the UFC, [autotag]Kai Kamaka III[/autotag] has been riding high most of his career.

Now he’ll try to keep his momentum going in the transition from Bellator to the PFL and its season format – in which he could sincerely change his life if he takes home the $1 million featherweight season prize.

The 29-year-old Kamaka (12-5-1), from Hawaii, takes on 2022 featherweight finalist Bubba Jenkins (21-7) on April 19 at the PFL’s third regular season event of 2024 on April 19 in Chicago. He’s in a unique spot, too.

“There’s a little handful of us that have crossed all three promotions (the UFC, Bellator and PFL),” Kamaka said at a recent PFL media day. “I was around PFL (with other fighters) since 2018, so I’m very familiar with PFL, with the staff, with just everything behind the scenes. I didn’t think of it as on my path, per se, since 2018, but the way things happen, it’s kind of cool.”

After a 1-2-1 run in the UFC, Kamaka returned to Bellator in 2021. After a 1-1 start, he has three straight wins on his resume heading into his PFL debut.

He’s coming off arguably the biggest win of his career, a split decision this past October against Henry Corrales, who at the time had roughly 50 percent more fights than the Kamaka opponent with the next most experience.

“After the Corrales fight, I wanted to get in right away, but there was so much uncertainty the whole year (about what would happen with Bellator),” Kamaka said. “… I’m just glad to be booked, and the first fight is coming up soon.”

Kamaka said making the move to the PFL came with some questions, like the inherent desire to want to represent Bellator first and foremost. But more than anything, he just wanted to be booked to continue his momentum.

Check out Kamaka’s full interview in the video above.

UFC veterans in MMA action Oct. 4-7

Check out which veterans of the UFC are competing in combat sports across the globe this weekend.

This week, the UFC returns to action with UFC Fight Night 229 in Las Vegas.

Last week, the promotion took a week off after 17 consecutive weekends with a fight card. At the UFC Apex, lightweights [autotag]Grant Dawson[/autotag] and [autotag]Bobby Green[/autotag] will collide in the main event.

Elsewhere, many other combat sports events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

Check out which veterans of the global MMA leader are competing in MMA Oct. 4-7.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

Matchup Roundup: New UFC and Bellator fights announced in the past week (May 16-21)

All the UFC and Bellator fight announcements that were first reported or confirmed by MMA Junkie in the past week.

MMA fight announcements are hard to follow. With so many outlets and channels available, it’s nearly impossible to organize.

But here at MMA Junkie, we’ve got your back.

Each week, we’ll compile all the newly surfaced fights in one spot. Every Monday, expect a feature listing everything you might have missed from the UFC or Bellator.

Here are the fight announcements that were broken or confirmed by MMA Junkie or officially announced by a promotion from May 16-21.

UFC veterans in MMA and boxing action April 21-23

Check out which UFC veterans are in MMA and boxing action across the globe this weekend.

This week, the UFC is back in Las Vegas at the UFC Apex for a heavyweight showdown. In the main event, [autotag]Sergei Pavlovich[/autotag] takes on [autotag]Curtis Blaydes[/autotag] in a fight scheduled for five rounds.

Elsewhere, many other MMA and boxing events are taking place that feature a number of familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

This weekend, there are a total of 18 veterans of the global MMA leader competing in MMA and boxing this week from April 21-23.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

Bellator 289: Best photos from Connecticut

Check out these photos from the fights at Bellator 289 in Uncasville, Conn.

Check out these photos from the fights at Bellator 289, headlined by an interim bantamweight title and grand prix semifinal bout between Raufeon Stots and Danny Sabatello. (Photos courtesy of Lucas Noonan, Bellator MMA)

UFC veterans in MMA, boxing and bareknuckle action Dec. 8-10

Check out which veterans of the UFC are in action this week.

This week, UFC 282 serves as the promotion’s final pay-per-view event of the year at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas.

Elsewhere, many MMA, boxing and bareknuckle events are taking place that feature familiar names that have competed under the UFC banner.

These 13 veterans of the global MMA leader are competing in MMA, boxing and bareknuckle this week from Dec. 8-10.

Check out the names and details about their bouts below.

Upcoming event information from Tapology.

MMA Junkie’s 2021 Gym of the Year: Xtreme Couture

Xtreme Couture took home two UFC titles and a host of other major promotion wins.

Xtreme Couture is MMA Junkie’s 2021 Gym of the Year.

In a year filled with ups and downs for the majority of high-profile MMA gyms, Xtreme Couture quietly built up a strong 2021 resume with two UFC titles and assisting numerous other fighters to go undefeated over the 12-month stretch.

Heavyweight [autotag]Francis Ngannou[/autotag] and bantamweight [autotag]Aljamain Sterling[/autotag] both captured UFC titles in 2021 with lead-up preparation at Xtreme Couture.

[autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] emerged as a top middleweight contender with back-to-back wins over Krzysztof Jotko and Uriah Hall, and [autotag]Casey O’Neill[/autotag] skyrocketed up the women’s flyweight rankings with three straight victories. In addition, [autotag]Chris Curtis[/autotag] won MMA Junkie’s 2021 Comeback Fighter of the Year for his improbable 6-0 run including two wins in the UFC.

In Bellator, top contenders [autotag]Patchy Mix[/autotag] and [autotag]Mads Burnell[/autotag] called Xtreme Couture their training home and each went 2-0 in the calendar year with wins against some of the promotion’s finest.

Other notable fighters include [autotag]Miesha Tate[/autotag], [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag], [autotag]Brad Tavares[/autotag], [autotag]Manel Kape[/autotag], [autotag]Kevin Lee[/autotag], [autotag]Walt Harris[/autotag], [autotag]Cheyanne Buys[/autotag], [autotag]Kai Kamaka III[/autotag], [autotag]Julian Erosa[/autotag], [autotag]Jeremy Kennedy[/autotag], [autotag]Tim Johnson[/autotag], [autotag]Ion Cutelaba[/autotag], [autotag]Roman Dolize[/autotag], [autotag]Gustavo Lopez[/autotag], [autotag]Dalcha Lungiambula[/autotag], [autotag]Puna Soriano[/autotag], [autotag]Cynthia Calvillo[/autotag], and more.

Headed by coach Eric Nicksick, the staff also includes Eddie Barraco, Jimmy Gifford, Jake Shields, Dennis Davis, Roman Isabell, Rich Castro, Chad Lyman, Bryce Harley, Montel Williams, Jamie Huey, Nate Pettit, Tim Lane, Danny Davis, Gil Guardado, Ryan Couture, Clinton Treadway and more, as well as team captains Randy Couture and Ray Sefo (according to the gym’s official website).

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UFC parts ways with Kai Kamaka after majority draw against Danny Chavez

After a string of bad luck, Kai Kamaka is no longer a UFC fighter.

After a string of bad luck, [autotag]Kai Kamaka[/autotag] is no longer a UFC fighter.

Kamaka (8-4-1 MMA, 1-2-1 UFC) went 1-2-1 under the UFC banner, with his lone octagon win coming in his promotional debut, a “Fight of the Night” war against Tony Kelley at UFC 252.

MMA Junkie confirmed the news of Kamaka’s split with the UFC on Thursday after an initial report from MMA Island. Kamaka fought out his four-fight contract with the promotion.

In his most recent octagon appearance, the 26-year-old Hawaiian battled to a majority draw with Danny Chavez at UFC on ESPN 28 in July, a bout in which he stepped in on short notice to replace an injured Doo Ho Choi. Kamaka was penalized for an inadvertent groin strike and eye poke, which resulted in a point deduction and led to the draw.

A Bellator and LFA alum, Kamaka signed with the UFC in August 2020 after putting together a five-fight winning streak.

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Kai Kamaka ready to relax after making it to UFC ahead of first son’s birth

Take a look inside Kai Kamaka’s win over Tony Kelley at UFC 252 in Las Vegas.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Kai Kamaka III[/autotag] beat Tony Kelley with a unanimous decision Saturday to open the preliminary card at UFC 252 in Las Vegas.

Take a look inside the fight with Kamaka, who won his UFC debut and picked up his sixth consecutive victory.

Result: Kai Kamaka III def. Tony Kelley via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Updated records: Kamaka III (8-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC), Kelley (5-2 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Key stat: The striking battle was razor thin: Kamaka edged Kelley just 138-136. But Kamaka’s five takedowns made a big difference.

Kamaka on the fight’s key moment

“I just had to not let him back me up in that third round – that’s it. I knew if I stuck my feet on the ground, he couldn’t figure out my timing. When I was backing up, that’s when he was on the gas, but if I don’t back up, it’s hard to figure out my jab, it’s hard to figure out my timings.”

Kamaka on making it to the UFC

“I’m just relieved to be here – I know I belong. It was perfect, but everybody (saw) that I belong here. Now I just have to step up my game more and everything. It’s good to be here. It’s good to finally be here. I’m relieved that I’m here. I’m not working to get here – I’m not working to move up the ladder.”

Kamaka on what he wants next

“I’m going to go to my grandma’s house (and) lay back. (I) can’t wait to get home to my kids. But the way I’m celebrating is, my wife is going to give birth in a month – my first boy. That’ll be a relief, and I can take a step back.”

To hear more from Kamaka, check out the video of the full post-fight interview above.

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