Kauai’s first MMA event of 2012 kicked off last Saturday at Kauai Beach Resort with X-1/Ainofea/RK Sports’ Warpath to Mayhem: Rumble at the Resort event. The sold out event featured nine amateur MMA bouts with fighters representing Kauai, Oahu, Big Island, California, and Las Vegas.
The night started off with Joe Gogo and Cody Santos finishing their opponents via TKO (strikes) in round 1 and ended with Kapeli Tam, Nalu Hawelu, and Keenin Cohen finishing their opponents via rear naked choke submissions to close out the night. The quickest and most exciting fight of the night definitely went to Paul Desoto and Nalu Hawelu, who showcased excellent stand up and ground skills throughout the fight. Hawelu, the brother of Kauai MMA standout, Tyson Hawelu, made his MMA debut just two months after receiving his brown belt in Brazilian jiu jitsu.
However, the excitement didn’t stop there either. During intermission, an Ainofea standup paddle board worth over $1,000 was given away. The lucky winner, Luis Soltren, a longtime MMA supporter and sponsor on Kauai, could not have deserved it more. All of the proceeds from the raffle will be donated to one martial arts academy on the island.
Although the next Ainofea event has not been scheduled yet, you can be sure that Kauai fight fans cannot wait until the next one, as this fight card did not disappoint.
125 lbs amateur belt bout
Keenin Cohen (Hawaiian MMA) def Junior Gomez (Hawaiian Fighting Arts) via rear naked choke submission in round 3
155 lbs amateur bout
Nalu Hawelu (New Breed Kauai) def Paul Desoto (Hawaiian MMA) via rear naked choke submission in round 1
215 lbs amateur bout
Kapeli Tam (Full Armor FS) def Edmon Marshall (KOA – California) via rear naked choke submission in round 2
Heavyweight bout
Kapena Cummings (KTI) def Jacob Leota (Hawaiian Fighting Arts) via decision
145 lbs bout
Tim Teves (New Breed Kauai) def Pablo Garcia (Nu Era JJ) via decision
145 lbs bout
Garren Millare (Full Armor) def Kaylan Gorospe (Chris Leben FS) via decision
155 lbs bout
Raymond Banda (Hawaiian Fighting Arts) def Nile Grinpas (Chris Leben FS) via decision
142 lbs bout
Cody Santos (Bulls Pen) def Domanic Barretto (Kauai Pankration) via TKO (strikes) in round 1
135 lbs bout
Joe Gogo (Chris Leben FS) def Kylan Gandia (Full Armor FS) via TKO (strikes) in round 1
Lordy, this was so much easier to read.