Do the names B.J. Penn, Max Holloway, and Travis Browne ring a bell? One thing they have in common is they’re all from Hawaii.
Max Holloway famously remarked: “We should have a UFC Hawaii, since there’s so many great fighters out here”. Hawaii only has a population of 1.4 million residents, but it’s sent over a dozen professional fighters to the UFC and other MMA leagues.
The Hawaiian Islands may have produced as many UFC champions as Dagestan. They produced champions in all weight categories and gained a reputation as some of the fiercest fighters alive.
Hawaiian UFC champs are racially diverse. Some come from a native Hawaiian background, others come from a Polynesian background, and some have European heritage. The thing that unites them is their love for their homeland and fighting.
With that said, let’s get into this list of legends! Also be sure to check out our rankings of the greatest UFC fighters of all time here.
Table of Contents
15. K.J. Noons
| Height: | 5’11 |
| Weight: | 168 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 13-9 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Kailua-Kona |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2013-2016 |
K.J. Noons, aka “King”, is one of Hawaii’s most brutal fighters. When you watch his fights, you notice he never had mercy on his opponents when he was knocking them out. He’s not only an MMA fighter, but he’s also a professional boxer and kickboxer.
Noons is actually a worse MMA fighter than he is a boxer or kickboxer. In boxing, his record is 11-2 and in kickboxing his record is 12-2. In MMA, his record is 13-9. He was practically unbeatable in the ring, and barely won more than 50% of his fights in the Octagon. Despite that, the highlights of his career were in the Octagon and he starred in the UFC.
He grew up in Kailua-Kona and he was the son of a retired kickboxer. His father taught him about boxing and martial arts from an early age, and he started practicing Karate before he was 10 years. He participated in Karate tournaments throughout high school, but was often disqualified because he went too hard at his opponents. That’s when he decided he wanted to get into “rougher” sports like Muay Thai.
He debuted at REF 11 in 2002 and was immediately successful, knocking out Raul Guerra. A few years later he won PRIDE’s best striker auditions. He was known for his brutal attack style and high-energy outbursts that he used to finish off his opponents in a matter of seconds.
A year later he partnered with one of the biggest promoters in the fight business, Gary Shaw, who helped him get kickboxing and MMA fights simultaneously. He had one of the biggest fights of his career against Nick Diaz (Nate Diaz’s big brother) and he knocked him out cold.
Noons was fighting for PRIDE until 2013 when he was signed to the UFC. His UFC record was actually terrible, as he was getting older and his fighting abilities deteriorated. He lost his first UFC fight against Donald Cerrone, but then beat George Sotiropoulos and Sam Stout.
His most difficult fight in the UFC was against Alex Oliveira who knocked him out. A year later, he faced Josh Burkman and lost by decision. This was his final MMA fight and he retired from fighting. He’s now living in his native Hawaii married to a professional model and occasionally advocates for animal rights.
14. Kailin Curran
| Height: | 5’3 |
| Weight: | 115 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 6-7 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Ewa Beach |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2014-2017 |
Kailin Curran is Hawaii’s most notable female MMA fighter, despite not having a great record. Out of a total of 13 professional fights, she lost 7 and won 6. She is of mixed native Hawaiian, Samoan, and German heritage.
Curran grew up in Ewa Beach, one of the most beautiful areas of Hawaii close to all the top MMA gyms in the state. She started out wrestling in high school and had her first professional MMA fighters soon after.
She fought three professional fights in Guam for Pacific Xtreme Combat and won against Kaiyana Rain, Emi Tomimatsu, and Yoo Jin Jung. That’s when she drew the attention of the UFC and got signed in 2014.
Her debut in the UFC was unsuccessful because she got knocked out by Paige VanZant. She lost to Alex Chambers afterwards, and then had her only win in the UFC against Emily Kagan.
After the Kagan win, she lost the next 4 fights in the UFC and her contract wasn’t renewed. That’s not surprising because a 4 loss streak means your career in MMA is pretty much over.
Upon leaving the UFC, she fought a few more times at Invicta Phoenix and won two more fights. Although she hasn’t announced her retirement, she still hasn’t fought in more than 4 years. She’s married to Keanu Asing, a surfing champion out of Hawaii.
13. Wesley Correira
| Height: | 6’3 |
| Weight: | 253 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 21-16 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Hilo |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2002-2004 |
Wesley Correira aka “Cabbage” is one of the biggest knockout machines to come out of Hawaii. Standing at 6’3 and 250 lbs., he fought in the heavyweight and super heavyweight divisions and had one of the best records among MMA fighters from Hawaii. He fought a total of 37 fights and won 27 of them. More than half of his wins were by knockout.
His passion for MMA started at a very young age, and he came up at the same time as one of the most influential Hawaiian fighters – B.J. Penn. They both trained at the same gym in Honolulu and helped each other out.
Cabbage was a true Hawaiian patriot. In his heavyweight title fight against Tim Sylvia (which he lost), he painted the Hawaiian flag on his head. He fought the entire fight like that without being affected.
His MMA career started terribly and he lost his first 3 professional fights back in 2000. Most fighters would’ve given up at that point, but this only motivated him. He then went full beast mode and won his next 7 fights in an insane streak where he KO’d every single one of those 7 opponents.
While Cabbage didn’t spend a lot of time fighting in the UFC, his 7-win streak brought him to the attention of the UFC and they signed him. His first appearance in the UFC ended his win streak when he fought against Tim Sylvia and lost by knockout. The two hugged it out at the end, so UFC fans started liking him.
He won his next two fights in the UFC against Sean Alvarez and Tank Abbott – knocking both of them out. His final appearance in the UFC was in 2004 at UFC 47 when he lost to heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski. He then went on to fight at the RWE and WEC for the rest of his career.
Correira mostly fought out of Hawaii until his retirement in 2016.
12. Enson Inoue
| Height: | 5’10 |
| Weight: | 204 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 12-8 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 1997 |
Hawaii has a long-standing Japanese community and Inoue is one of their greatest and most-controversial fighters. Inoue is pure Japanese ethnically, but his family resided in Hawaii for three generations. He’s very outspoken and there were rumors that he’s tied to the Japanese Yakuza. He’s also a YouTuber and frequently comments on current fights.
Inoue had a 15-year professional MMA career between 1995-2010. He fought for PRIDE, UFC, and other MMA organizations. Out of 20 professional fights, he only won 12, so he’s not among the best but he did attract a lot of attention for his fighting style.
He started out training Brazilian Jiu Jitsu while he was a young boy in Hawaii. He struggled a lot with bullies, so he wanted to be as strong as possible. He also trained Taekwondo and played football. He trained a lot with his brother Egan Inoue who’s a professional Jiu Jitsu fighter.
When he was in his 20s, he wanted to move out to Japan for his professional debut, but he didn’t have any luck after reaching out to MMA organizations. That was until 1995 when Satoru Sayama from Shooto gave him an opportunity to debut in Tokyo. He took advantage of that and KO’d Shingo Shigeta in his first professional fight. He proceeded to fight for Shooto out of Tokyo for the next two and a half years where he won 5 fights and lost 3.
The UFC reached out to Inoue and he flew back to the United States to fight at UFC 13. His first UFC debut was successful after he knocked out Royce Alger. He didn’t want to fight at the UFC anymore and went back to Japan where he experienced a number of losses.
His last fight in the US was in Hawaii against Tommy Sauer, and he lost that fight in 2004. He didn’t fight for 6 years after that (due to a fighting ban) and his last professional bout was in 2010 against Antz Nansen which he won by submission.
Inoue had trouble with the law in Japan. He was arrested for marijuana possession in 2008 and had to spend a month in jail. The Japanese government banned him from fighting for 2 years and also gave him a 4-year probation period during which he couldn’t leave the country. This practically ended his fighting career.
He’s also married to the sister of Japanese UFC champion, Norifumi Yamamoto. He apparently saved him from an incident with the Yakuza back in Japan, and said he did business with Yakuza members, but that he’s not a member of their organization.
11. Russell Doane
| Height: | 5’7 |
| Weight: | 135 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 16-8 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2014-2018 |
Russell Doane might be the epitome of a passionate Hawaiian fighter. He had a really long win streak that was broken as soon as he started in the UFC, but he has one of the best all-time records among Hawaiian fighters. Out of a total 24 bouts, he won 16 of them and lost 8.
Doane has a real passion for MMA because he competed in multiple organizations and won bantamweight titles in all of them. Aside from the UFC, he was the bantamweight champion of King of the Cage and Tachi Palace Fights.
One thing that stands out about Doane compared to other Hawaiian fighters is his speed. He’s a smallish guy at 5’7, but the way he accelerated at his opponents and went for the takedown is giving me Khamzat Chimaev vibes. He’d attack them as soon as he saw an opening and try to settle the fight on the ground.
His first professional bout was against Chris Williams in his hometown Honolulu, and he lost it by submission. His second professional fight was a success after he battered Tyson Nam and knocked him out. Between 2007 and 2014, prior to getting signed by the UFC, he won a total of 13 fights and lost only 3.
Doane won his first four UFC fights, but then went on a 4-fight loss streak that pretty much ended his career. Between 2014 and 2016, he wasn’t able to win a single fight. It was a complete miracle that Dana White kept him on the payroll and he was still getting fights.
He broke the spell in 2017 in the fight against Kwan Ho Kwak who he knocked out. His last fight in the UFC was in 2018 when he lost to Rani Yahya by submission. He then fought at Destiny MMA 2019 and won his last fight.
Doane is still considered an active fighter, but he hasn’t had a fight in nearly 5 years so he’s likely retired and enjoying life. He was working as a carpenter prior to his MMA career. We might still see him in the Octagon, though.
10. Yancy Medeiros
| Height: | 5’10 |
| Weight: | 171 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 16-8 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Wai’anae |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2013-2021 |
Yancy is the definition of a Waianae warrior – he looks like one, acts like one, and fights like one. He has native Hawaiian and Philippine origins and wrestled out of his high school, then became the MMA champion of Hawaii multiple times. Out of a total of 26 fights, he won 16 and lost 8. Most of his losses weren’t by knockout, but by decision or disqualification.
He had his professional debut in Honolulu at Hawaii Fight League 1 and won against Rigo Mendoza back in 2007. This was the start of an insane win streak that lasted until 2013 – he was undefeated in his first 9 fights.
Madeiros has no mercy in the Octagon. He always went for brutal elbow kicks and his fights felt like they were about to end his opponent’s careers.
He put on a brutal performance in his UFC debut against Rustam Khabilov in 2013. He dropped dozens of pounds to meet his lightweight opponent and fought fiercely until Khabilov went for a takedown, injuring Madeiros’s thumb. He was instantly injured and Kahbilov took advantage of the moment to knock him out.
His second fight in the UFC was fantastic and he won by TKO against Yves Edwards. He later tested positive for marijuana and his win was overturned and removed from his UFC record. Madeiros’s most difficult fight was in 2015 against UFC champ Dustin Poirier and he lost to a knockout after a leg kick to the face.
After stringing 4 consecutive losses in the UFC between 2018 and 2021, he left the UFC. He came up victorious in his Bellator debut against Emmanuel Sanchez, and he also beat Charlie Leary in 2023 but his win was overturned again due to substance abuse (possibly marijuana).
Medeiros is still an active and dangerous beast, residing in his native Hawaii. He’s good friends with UFC champion Nate Diaz.
9. Falaniko Vitale
| Height: | 5’10 |
| Weight: | 185 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 30-11 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2003 |
Falaniko Vitale is one of the OGs of Hawaiian MMA that paved the way for future champions like Max Holloway. He’s now about to enter his 50s, but during his prime he was the champion of the UFC, Bellator, Strikeforce, the IFL, and King of the Cage. Vitale is an all-time legend who deserves a mention despite being retired for more than 10 years.
He comes from mixed Hawaiian, Samoan, German, and Portuguese descent. He grew up in Honolulu where he played college football as a defensive quarterback for the University of Hawaii. He was passionate about MMA and fighting and fought in the light heavyweight category for most of his career.
Vitale has a total of 41 professional fights and won 30. His professional debut was in 1992 against Aaron Riley who he knocked out. Prior to debuting in the UFC, all of his fights were in Hawaii where he knocked out the majority of his opponents. He went 13-2 before he was signed to the UFC.
His debut in the UFC was for UFC 43 in Las Vegas where he faced Matt Lindland. He always had a dominant appearance in the cage. Despite being only 5’10, he weighed close to 200 lbs and he had a wide reach, so he could always knock out opponents with ease.
He made another appearance in the UFC, and lost to Matt Lindland by knockout. This was the first knockout of his professional career. He spent the rest of his career fighting at different MMA championships around the US, where he had a lot of success and won the majority of his fights. He ended his career at KOTC with a loss.
He’s now residing in Hawaii with his family and has four children.
8. Louis Smolka
| Height: | 5’9 |
| Weight: | 135 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 17-9 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Kapolei |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2014-2022 |
Louis Smolka is one of the younger Hawaiian champions. He grew up in the town of Kapolei where he started training MMA in high school and debuted professionally in 2012 at 21 years old. Unlike most Hawaiian fighters who fought only a few fights in the UFC, Smolka spent most of his fighting career there.
In his professional career, he fought a total of 26 fights and won 17, making him one of Hawaii’s all-time greats. He was fighting amateur fights when he was only 18 years old with aspirations to one day fight in the UFC. Before the age of 20, he already had wins under X-1, King of the Cage, and Destiny MMA.
Smolka was unbeaten within the first 2 years of his professional career, and had a 7 fight win streak. Dana White signed him to the UFC in late 2013 and he debuted against Alp Ozkilic – winning the fight by decision. A few months later he experienced his first professional loss in the UFC against Chris Cariaso when judges ruled in Cariaso’s favor.
His first professional loss didn’t discourage him and he strung another 4 wins between 2014 and 2016. He beat one of Ireland’s greatest fighters, Paddy Holohan, to submission.
Smolka’s most prominent fight ever was against Brandon Moreno when Moreno debuted in the UFC. Moreno was on fire that night and seemed to dominate the fight. The two were grappling on the floor until Moreno caught him in a guillotine and practically suffocated him. Smolka gently tapped but the refs didn’t notice that, yet they still called off the fight.
The Moreno fight scared him and he ended up stringing four consecutive losses, before leaving the UFC temporarily. As soon as he left the UFC, he had a three fight win streak and then went back to the UFC. His return to the UFC was victorious against Su Mukerji.
Smolka was dropped by the UFC in 2022, and he announced free agency via Twitter. This is because he lost his last two fights in the UFC against Davey Grant and Vince Morales. He is still an active fighter and we’re likely going to see him in more MMA fights.
7. Brad Tavares
| Height: | 5’11 |
| Weight: | 185 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 20-8 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Kailua |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2010-present |
His full name is Bradley Kaipo Sarbida Tavares, and he is one of the longest-standing UFC fighters from Hawaii. Tavares is an absolute beast who doesn’t give up and was never submitted once in his 16-year professional MMA career. Out of a total 28 fights, he won 20 of them.
Tavares’s MMA career started when he was in high school. He was taking MMA classes in Pearl City, Hawaii and after a few amateur fights, he was invited to the Mixed Martial Arts Development (MMAD) camp where he was preparing to be a champion. He won his first 5 amateur fights and decided to go pro.
His first appearance in the UFC was in 2010 for “The Ultimate Fighter” series where he really stood out by knocking out Jordan Smith cold in less than a couple of seconds. The UFC signed him and he’s still fighting in the UFC then and there.
There are some fighters that never give up. If you try to submit them, they’ll never tap. Tavares is one of them. Watch his fight against Yoel Romero, the Cuban beast who tried to submit him for the duration of the fight. Even when Tavares was getting bloodied up and thrown around the Octagon, he never gave up and he was never submitted.
Between 2012 and 2014, he was undefeated in the UFC and went on a 5 fight win streak. His most difficult opponent was Israel Adesanya back in 2018. He put up a great fight against upcoming Adesanya, but lost by decision. He hasn’t had much luck in the UFC these past few years and lost 4 out of his last 7 fights.
He actually had an anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) injury in 2020, and this is a career-ender for most fighters. He’s still fighting despite limitations in his knee movement and this is a testament to the class of warrior he is. He’s still actively fighting in the UFC at age 35 and we might get a few more UFC seasons out of him before he chooses to retire.
6. Ray Cooper III
| Height: | 5’7 |
| Weight: | 177 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 25-8 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Pearl City |
| Years Active in UFC: | N/A |
Ray Cooper III is arguably the greatest middleweight fighter to come out of Hawaii and one of PFL’s greatest fighters. His name is “The Third” because he’s the son of a fighting champion – Ray Cooper Jr. He grew up in Pearl City, HI where his father taught him how to fight at a very young age.
Cooper was already Hawaii’s wrestling champion when he was in high school, winning multiple competitions. When he reached age 18, he was offered scholarships from all over the country, but he chose to focus on MMA and go pro. He succeeded and made it to the PFL a few years later.
He ended up victorious in his professional debut against Kani Correa back in 2012 – he knocked him out in 8 seconds. Unfortunately, he lost 3 out of his first 6 fights, and then he started a long-lasting win streak. He had a 3-year win streak between 2014 and 2017 where he basically annihilated every opponent and won every single fight by KO or submission. He was dominant in all of his fights.
Cooper debuted in the PFL in 2018 against Jake Shields who he brutally knocked out. He knocked out his next 3 opponents in the PFL and then ended up getting knocked out by Magomed Magomedkerimov who was undefeated at the time.
Magomedkerimov was his toughest opponent. He got a rematch with him in 2021 in one of the most brutal MMA matches, coming up victorious. Magomedkerimov tried very hard to submit him throughout the fight, but he managed to overpower him and finish him off on the ground. This fight was testament to Cooper’s raw strength and endurance. He won $1 million from the PFL and secured his welterweight belt.
Cooper III is still an active fighter for the PFL, and won his last bout against Brett Cooper. He knocked out Cooper cold in 24 seconds. He still resides in Hawaii with his large family and we’ll likely see new fights.
5. Dustin Kimura
| Height: | 5’7 |
| Weight: | 135 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 11-3 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2013-2014 |
Dustin Kimura, standing at 5’7 and 135 pounds, is one of Hawaii’s greatest MMA fighters by total W/L percentage. He fought a total of 14 professional fights, and lost only 3. Out of his 3 losses, he was submitted once only. Based on statistics alone, he’s right up there with the likes of Max Holloway – or even better.
Kimura came from humble beginnings in Honolulu where he studied at Honolulu Community College trying to get a degree in welding. It turns out that he was a better fighter than a welder, so it didn’t take long for him to go pro and end up fighting in the UFC.
He fights in bantamweight and featherweight categories, and had one of the longest win streaks among Hawaiian fighters. He won his first 3 amateur fights in Honolulu by submission, and then he went on a 9 fight win streak, which means he was undefeated for 12 fights between 2008 and 2013.
The UFC noticed him and he debuted in UFC 156 with a victory. He fought Chico Camus and after a fierce fight with lots of grappling, he managed to wrap his arms around Camus’s neck and submit him. A couple of months later, he experienced his first professional loss in the UFC against Mitch Gagnon to technical submission. This was his only loss that wasn’t by decision in his entire career.
Kimura didn’t have many fights after that. He won against Jon delos Reyes by submission and lost the next two fights by decision.
The best fight of his career was his last fight against Henry Cejudo. Cajudo had his debut that day and went all-out, but so did Kimura. The two put up a great fight and Kimura seemed to be dominating for a good portion of the fight. It seemed like a draw to an average spectator, and the judges ruled in Cejudo’s favor. The two fighters were very respectful of each other and hugged it out at the end.
This fight, however, ended Kimura’s career. The UFC released him from the promotion and he gave up on fighting altogether. He didn’t fight any professional matches anymore and went back to live in his native Hawaii.
4. Dan Ige
| Height: | 5’7 |
| Weight: | 145 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 17-7 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Haleiwa |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2018-present |
Dan Ige is one of the youngest UFC champions from Hawaii. With a fight record of 17-7, he won the majority of his fights and he’s still making a name for himself in the sport. He’s currently signed to the UFC and competes in the featherweight division, but he also fought for Legacy Fighting Championship and Pancrase.
Ige is from the island of Oahu and he started practicing Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Sumo wrestling at a young age. He fought 10 amateur fights and won 8 of them before he went pro.
His first two professional fights in 2015 were successful and he submitted both opponents near the end. He then lost to Japanese MMA fighter Taichi Nakajima.
It wasn’t until 2017 that Dana White noticed him and signed him to the UFC. He’s been fighting at the UFC since. Back in 2017, he participated in Dana White’s Contender Series 3 – an 8-week show in which contenders make their way through the rounds until a winner is selected.
Ige’s career in the UFC then started going good and he became UFC’s most relevant Hawaiian fighter aside from Max Holloway. He went on a 6-fight win streak between 2017 and 2020 – he was undefeated for 3 years. He then lost to Calvin Kattar by decision and this had an impact on his psyche, so he had 4 more losses between 2021 and 2023.
Dan is still fighting in the UFC without any plans to retire. He’s married and has a child, and he’s fighting out of Las Vegas – so there’s a good chance you can catch him watching him fight live if you want to support your fellow Hawaiian.
3. Travis Browne
| Height: | 6’7 |
| Weight: | 244 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 18-7 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2010-2017 |
Travis Browne is one of the scariest Hawaiian fighters to hit the Octagon. Standing at 6’8, “Hapa” is the tallest Hawaiian MMA fighter of all time and he’s among UFC’s top 20 tallest of all time. He’s currently retired as the most influential heavyweight fighter to come out of Hawaii.
Browne is the epitome of a Hawaiian champion. He comes from a mixed native Hawaiian and white American ancestry, and he was an athlete in his early age but mostly focused on basketball. He won an award for the best coastal high school basketball player in 2000. It wasn’t until he was 26 years old that he took fighting seriously enough to go pro.
He also hadn’t received formal training until he was 26. He didn’t immediately land at the UFC, but he racked up a very long winning streak and went undefeated for 3 years into his professional fighting career. Out of a total 26 professional fights, he won 14 by knockout with his powerful punch and massive reach.
One of Browne’s greatest achievements was knocking out the tallest UFC fighter of all time – Stefan Struve. Struve stood at 7′ when he faced Browne and got knocked out. Browne had a distinct fighting style where he’d back off and throw punches from a distance, and once he saw his opponents going out, he’d jump on them and finish them off brutally.
Browne’s first professional loss was to Brazilian heavyweight champion Antonio Silva. He then went on a 3 fight win streak and even knocked out one of UFC’s greatest all-time heavyweights – Josh Barnett.
His fighting career took a turn for the worse between 2014-2017 as he was getting older and lost 6 out of 8 bouts. In 2017, he lost to Alexey Oleynik. Dana took a personal jab at him and said that he should retire during a press conference. That’s when he decided to retire and he married Ronda Rousey who is a female UFC champion.
2. B.J. Penn
| Height: | 5’9 |
| Weight: | 145 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 16-14 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Kailua |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2001-2019 |
B.J. Penn is the most famous and influential Hawaiian MMA fighter of all time. We’re only ranking him #2 because Max Holloway has a better fight record than him. During the 2000’s and 2010’s, he was one the biggest superstars in the UFC and one of the reasons it became so popular. He’s left an impact on the UFC that can be compared to that of Conor McGregor.
Penn is not only a UFC champion that became the first to win titles in different weight classes, but he became the first Jiu-Jitsu world champion that wasn’t Brazilian. There are so many things to talk about B.J. Penn (aside from his fighting), so let’s start with his Hawaiian heritage.
Penn was always proud of his heritage. Every time he fought in the UFC, he’d walk out to Hawaiian songs – especially songs from the native singer Israel Kamakawiwo’ole. He spent his entire life in Hawaii and announced his candidacy for governor of Hawaii after his retirement (which didn’t work out – but he tried!).
It’s a big deal for fighters in the UFC to get a co-main event, let alone a main event. To get a feeling for how much of a superstar B.J. Penn was, he held the main event in the UFC a total of 11 times. He went up against pretty much every great fighter of his era, at a time when the UFC was doing poorly and considered scrapping the lightweight division.
His biggest opponent of the time was Georges St-Pierre. The two basically set the foundation for the modern UFC fighter with calculated leg kicks, grappling, and fast striking. The two had a similar fighting style and had one of the biggest fights in UFC history when they first faced each other. B.J. Penn visibly beat GSP in that fight and left him full of bruises, but the judges ruled in GSP’s favor by split decision – leaving B.J. Penn in shock.
Dana White said that B.J. Penn was the sole reason he kept the lightweight division of the UFC alive, at a time when it was the least popular division and they were questioning having it. He made the division super popular and brought lots of viewership to the UFC. This torch was later passed on to Conor McGregor.
B.J. Penn was always a clean fighter. He advocated against drug abuse in the UFC and started the first voluntary testing group for fighters in the organization. Moreover, his book “Mixed Martial Arts: The Book of Knowledge” is considered the bible of MMA fighting and lured many new fighters to the sport. It’s like an instruction manual on fighting authored by him.
Between 2011 and 2019, he lost all of his fights in the UFC. The UFC never dropped him because he was one of their biggest superstars, and he kept fighting until 2019 when he finally had enough and went into retirement.
He had a few scandals after retiring: His wife got a restraining order on him, he fought a bouncer at a strip club, he flipped his truck over, and had a DUI charge. But that’s basically the life story of every UFC champion.
1. Max Holloway
| Height: | 5’11 |
| Weight: | 145 lbs. |
| W/L Record: | 25-7 |
| Birthplace in Hawaii: | Honolulu |
| Years Active in UFC: | 2012-present |
When most people think “Hawaii UFC”, their first association is Max Holloway or B.J. Penn. The reason Max Holloway is the greatest Hawaiian UFC fighter is because of his influence on the sport and his fight record. B.J. Penn was fighting way out of his prime and string losses, while Max Holloway kept winning. Holloway is the all-time greatest UFC fighter to come out of Hawaii.
Out of 32 total fights, he lost 7. However, 6 out of 7 were by decision and he was only submitted once. He also fought the most challenging fighters in the UFC – big names like Conor McGregor, Alexander Volkanovski, and Dustin Poirier. B.J. Penn didn’t challenge as many all-time greats as he did.
Let’s start with his Hawaiian roots and what brought him to fighting. He grew up in Honolulu, in the Waianae area, which has a reputation as a rough neighborhood. There’s a big fist-fighting culture in the place that produced many great fighters. His mom was a drug addict and his father abused her and left when he was 11 years old. At 15, he got into kickboxing and MMA, and started training in the local gym.
He fought 4 amateur fights between ages 15-19 and won all of them. He gained a reputation as a highly-versatile fighter for his ability to throw spinning kicks, elbows, and knees. Depending on his opponent, he used all of these striking techniques and he did it effectively.
Holloway is an absolute machine in the Octagon. In his biggest fights against Volkanovski and McGregor, they both tried to dominate him, but neither could ever submit him or knock him out. He always lasted through the rounds and gave them a good beating.
There’s only one fighter in the history of the UFC who ever managed to KO Holloway – Dustin Poirier. And that was early in his career when he was just starting out. He fought Alex 3 times, and lost the trilogy, but all his losses were by decision. Alex couldn’t submit him in 3 fights, whereas he managed to KO fighters like Yair Rodriguez.
In an outburst of absolute confidence during his fight against Calvin Kattar, Holloway overheard commentators talking about his fighting style. He then shouted “I’m the best kickboxer in the UFC!” at the camera while he was in the middle of the fight. He felt so confident in the Octagon that he took focus off his opponent for a bit to do this. He won that fight by decision.
Another reason Max Holloway is the greatest Hawaiian UFC fighter of all time is the records he holds. He’s tied with Jon Jones for the longest winning streak in the UFC, and also holds records for most total strikes landed in a fight (among a dozen more). Not a single fighter from Hawaii comes close to beating his records.
Holloway is in his early 30s and still an active fighter. He’s currently ranked #12 pound-for-pound in the UFC and the best with Hawaiian origins. We’re likely going to see more greatness coming from this man in the future as one of UFC’s most promising stars.
Summary
Hawaii is not only known for it’s natural beauty, but for it’s warrior-like population. It’s the region with the highest amount of fighters in the US per capita and consistently produces top-tier talent.
There’s an underlying fight culture in the Pacific region that is difficult to explain. It could be that there’s a chip on their shoulder and they’re always trying to prove themselves. Despite having only 1.4M residents in the state of Hawaii, it produced some of the most legendary fighters the UFC has ever seen.
Legends like Max Holloway and B.J. Penn contributed a lot to the popularity of the UFC and gave Hawaii a reputation as a place with some of the fiercest fighters in the world.