With all of the Olympic hysteria going on (and the lack of comments from my Kauai related posts ), I’ll switch it up a bit for this week’s Fave Five list to include an Olympic star from Hawaii: Bryan Clay. Clay captured gold in the decathlon this year, the last American to do so since Dan O’Brien did it in Atlanta in 1996.
Anytime a local boy (or girl) does good, it makes me proud to call Hawaii my home. Here’s my current list of fave Hawaii Athletes.
BJ Penn - the ultimate bad @$$ in MMA. His stand-up is wicked and his ground game is off the chain. He is regularly mentioned when a “best pound for pound fighter” debate occurs and is easily in the top 10 of best MMA fighters of all time. The best part is that he stays humble and always recognizes Hawaii in everything he does. True local boy who remains true. You gotta love it!
Colt Brennan - Bruddah turned this town upside down with the announcement of his returning, the leadership in our undefeated season and potential Heisman run. Now with his drafting from the Washington Redskins, we will continue to root him on.
Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson - this athlete has gone “Hollywood” on us, but we still love him nonetheless. He still does the shaka and mentions Hawaii periodically.
Jason Elam - Anytime you can use a guy from Hawaii on your Fantasy Football team (and he does well no less!), it’s golden!
Bryan Clay -you can’t argue the title of “world’s greatest athlete” for this Castle High grad. Doing in big on the International Level. Mad respect!
MMA Television Programming for Hawaii - August 2008 (All shows are in HST on Oceanic Time Warner Cable): Info may be updated after original post date so keep checking back.
Fri, August 1 @ 3:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Inside MMA: Guest panelists include MMA legend Randy Couture with details on his new book Becoming the Natural, his co-author Loretta Hunt, and combat sports medical specialist Dr. Johnny Benjamin.
Fri, August 1 @ 4:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Best of 2008, Vol. 2: The second installment of the best Mixed Martial Arts fights from 2008 on HDNet Fights. Fighters in action include IFL stars Roy Nelson and Waggney Fabiano, former 4-time All-American wrestler Jake Rosholt, and SportFight Featherweight Champion Enoch Wilson.
Sat, August 2 at the Neil Blaisdell Arena (local event - not televized)
Icon Hard Times: Kala Kolohe Hose vs. Rolando Dominique, Bao Quach vs. Mark Oshiro, Phil Baroni vs. Ron Verdadero, Ross Ebanez vs. Keoni Bryant, Sidney Silva vs. Hideto Kondo, etc.
Sun, August 3 @ 3PM on Versus Channel 0210 or HGOLF Channel 1216
WEC Live on Versus: Brian Stann defends his WEC™ light heavyweight title for the first time against Steve Cantwell, and WEC™ welterweight title holder Carlos Condit takes on Hiromitsu Miura. Watch live on Versus 6pm PT / 9pm ET Sunday night. [Fight Card]
Sun, August 3 @ 3:30AM on KHNL Channel 0008 or HDKHNL Channel 1008
Strikeforce on NBC: Strikeforce on NBC brings you face-to-face with some of the most exciting Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the nation, every Saturday night! From top professional competitors and champions to the up-and-coming challengers, you’ll get an insider’s perspective on the world’s most extreme sport. Experience the adrenaline-filled, heart-pounding action that comes with each round in the cage - this is a series that will put MMA fans on the edge of their seats!
Wed, August 6 @ 3PM on Spike TV Channel 0559
UFC Unleashed Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin: UFC® Unleashed™ is a themed hour of the best fights, legendary fighters and previews of upcoming battles.
Wed, August 6 @ 4PM on Versus Channel 0210 or HGOLF Channel 1216
TapouT: Danny Lauzon: TapouT we follow the TapouT crew as they head out to East Bridgewater, MA to check out up-and-coming MMA fighter Dany Lauzon, little brother to UFC fighter Joe Lauzon. Before heading to meet Dany, the guys decide to stop in Boston to check out some historical landmarks where typical TapouT antics ensue. Once on the road again Mask and Skrape continue the fun by driving Punkass to the edge of losing it. Once they finally reach Dany who lives outside of Boston in East Bridgewater they soon discover that Dany has all the potential to be a great fighter but does not have the proper trainers. TapouT brings Dany to Mark DellaGrotte’s gym to show him that there are other options for him if he truly wants to be a professional fighter. The episode builds to the climatic ending where Dany fights at the World Championship Fighting in Wilmington, MA. Special Guest appearance by UFC President Dana White, who stops by the WCF fights.
Fri, August 8 @ 3:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Inside MMA: Inside MMA is your opportunity to step inside the world of mixed martial arts and find out what it takes to be a champion. Hosts Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice provide all the latest news and highlights, along with features, analysis, and rankings.
Fri, August 8 @ 4:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Strikeforce™: Undercover: The best young fighters in action from Strikeforce, one of the top Mixed Martial Arts promotions in the world. Featured fights include: Lightweight contender Nam Phan (14-4) vs. undefeated Billy Evangelista (6-0), and 21 year-old Miesha Tate vs. veteran Elaina “Beef” Maxwell.
Sat, August 9 @ 4PM on PPV Channel 0701 or HDPPV Channel 1700 (preshow starts at 3:30PM)
UFC 87 Seek and Destroy: St-Pierre vs. Fitch: Georges ‘Rush’ St-Pierre defends the UFC® Welterweight Championship at UFC® 87: SEEK AND DESTROY, as number one contender Jon Fitch steps up to take on the newly crowned champion. Then, hometown hero Brock Lesnar returns to the Octagon™ to seek redemption in the Heavyweight Division. Plus, in what could end up being the matchup of the year, lightweight contenders face off as Kenny ‘KenFlo’ Florian battles Roger ‘El Matador’ Huerta. [Fight Card]
Sun, August 10 @ 3:30AM on KHNL Channel 0008 or HDKHNL Channel 1008
Strikeforce on NBC: Strikeforce on NBC brings you face-to-face with some of the most exciting Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the nation, every Saturday night! From top professional competitors and champions to the up-and-coming challengers, you’ll get an insider’s perspective on the world’s most extreme sport. Experience the adrenaline-filled, heart-pounding action that comes with each round in the cage - this is a series that will put MMA fans on the edge of their seats!
Wed, August 13 @ 4PM on Versus Channel 0210 or HGOLF Channel 1216
TapouT: Greg McIntyre: On this episode of TapouT we follow the TapouT crew as they check in with an old friend Greg McIntyre in San Diego, CA who’s reentering the MMA world after having his colon removed. After stocking up on some TapouT gear, the crew heads to Throwdown Elite Training Facility to catch up with Greg and his trainer, UFC veteran Dean Lister. During the episode, TapouT learns more about Greg, his illness and the struggles he has gone through to get back into the cage. TapouT decides to sponsor Greg at the PURECOMBAT fight event in Visalia, CA where Greg will have to prove whether or not he is physically ready to be back in the cage fighting.
Fri, August 15 @ 3:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Inside MMA: Inside MMA is your opportunity to step inside the world of mixed martial arts and find out what it takes to be a champion. Hosts Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice provide all the latest news and highlights, along with features, analysis, and rankings.
Fri, August 15 @ 5PM on Showtime Channel 0633 or HD Showtime Channel 1633
SHOXC Elite Challenger Series: Po`ai Suganuma vs. Jared Hamman. [Fight Card]
Mon, August 18 @ 3PM on Spike TV Channel 0559
UFC Unleashed Liddell vs. Silva: UFC® Unleashed™ is a themed hour of the best fights, legendary fighters and previews of upcoming battles.
Sun, August 17 @ 3:30AM on KHNL Channel 0008 or HDKHNL Channel 1008
Strikeforce on NBC: Strikeforce on NBC brings you face-to-face with some of the most exciting Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the nation, every Saturday night! From top professional competitors and champions to the up-and-coming challengers, you’ll get an insider’s perspective on the world’s most extreme sport. Experience the adrenaline-filled, heart-pounding action that comes with each round in the cage - this is a series that will put MMA fans on the edge of their seats!
Wed, August 20 @ 4PM on Versus Channel 0210 or HGOLF Channel 1216
TapouT: Johny and Jake: The TapouT crew travels to Las Vegas, NV looking for a 185 pounder to fill out their roster - Jake Rosholt and Johny Hendricks are both put to the test it out to see if they have what it takes to be a TapouT fighter in this unbelievable double header.
Fri, August 22 @ 3:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Inside MMA: Inside MMA is your opportunity to step inside the world of mixed martial arts and find out what it takes to be a champion. Hosts Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice provide all the latest news and highlights, along with features, analysis, and rankings.
Sun, August 24 @ 3:30AM on KHNL Channel 0008 or HDKHNL Channel 1008
Strikeforce on NBC: Strikeforce on NBC brings you face-to-face with some of the most exciting Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the nation, every Saturday night! From top professional competitors and champions to the up-and-coming challengers, you’ll get an insider’s perspective on the world’s most extreme sport. Experience the adrenaline-filled, heart-pounding action that comes with each round in the cage - this is a series that will put MMA fans on the edge of their seats!
Wed, August 27 @ 4PM on Versus Channel 0210 or HGOLF Channel 1216
TapouT: Albert Manners: On this episode of TapouT, the guys head back to Hilo, HI to scope out fighter Albert Manners who trains with MMA fighter BJ Penn.
Fri, August 29 @ 3:30PM on HDNET Channel 1355
Inside MMA: Inside MMA is your opportunity to step inside the world of mixed martial arts and find out what it takes to be a champion. Hosts Bas Rutten and Kenny Rice provide all the latest news and highlights, along with features, analysis, and rankings.
Sun, August 31 @ 3:30AM on KHNL Channel 0008 or HDKHNL Channel 1008
Strikeforce on NBC: Strikeforce on NBC brings you face-to-face with some of the most exciting Mixed Martial Arts fighters in the nation, every Saturday night! From top professional competitors and champions to the up-and-coming challengers, you’ll get an insider’s perspective on the world’s most extreme sport. Experience the adrenaline-filled, heart-pounding action that comes with each round in the cage - this is a series that will put MMA fans on the edge of their seats!
OK, so if you’re an MMA fan, you probably already saw the weekend’s action, so I won’t go into it in much detail, but there were a few things I saw that just cracked me up! And I just gotsta know if the following were just as amusing to you as they were to me.
CBS had its second major event on network television on Saturday, which featured the Lawler vs. Smith rematch. The formula was pretty much the same for the event, which included an unpolished (as usual) Frank Shamrock behind the mic, but the more distracting thing about him was his BRACES! Did anyone else crack up with me when they saw that??? I must admit, he is getting a little better at making it seem like he’s not reading the prompter word for word, but the braces and his inability to speak normally just threw everything off for me completely.
In the Jake Shields / Nick “The Goat” Thompson Welterweight title match, Thompson’s repulsive beard made me laugh as well. He really did look like a goat with that thang. A billygoat.
Lastly, though aired the night before, Friday’s edition of Inside MMA cracked me up the hardest so I saved the best for last! Co-host Kenny Rice had a progressively worse sweatfest as the show continued. At the top of the show, he mentioned that the A/C in the Osaka-Jo Hall (the site of this week’s show) had been shut off. In the beginning you could see Kenny and Bas start to glisten with moisture. As the show went on, Bas kept his relative cool, while Kenny kept a’ drippin’. His forehead started to bead, his neck collar started to drench, and at one point, he pulled out his handkerchief and wiped his face mid-question! In the closing segment of the show, they cut back to Kenny and Bas and it looked like he was drained and ready to faint. His hair was drenched, collar undone (with tie removed) and eyes barely open. It looked bad, but I couldn’t help but laugh my butt off. Poor, poor Kenny… I hope he’s ok.
Mahaloz to skycastles for suggesting this one. For today’s Fave Five Friday list, let’s follow up last week’s Hawaii Television Stations list with Fave Five Television Shows. Hurr we go!
The Office (seasonal on NBC: Oceanic Digital Channel 0008 or HD NBC 1008)
ESPN SportsCenter (nightly on ESPN: Oceanic Digital Channel 0222 or HD ESPN 1222)
Others include TapouT (seasonal - starting on July 30th! - on Versus: Oceanic Digital Channel 0210 or HGOLF 1216), Late Night with Conan O’Brien (M-F on NBC: Oceanic Digital Channel 0008 or HD NBC 1008), American Idol (seasonal on FOX: Oceanic Digital Channel 0003 or HD FOX 1003), Art Mann Presents (regularly on HDNet: Oceanic HD Channel 1355) and for brownie points, Wedding SOS (Fridays on Fine Living: Oceanic Digital Channel 0322).
What say you?
P.S. Stay tuned for a special FREE Movie Pass Giveaway post tomorrow for the new movie Pineapple Express!
Happy Monday Errone. Another big weekend in MMA. Did ya’ll catch it? Let’s recap shall we?
UFC Fight Night: Silva vs. Irvin (Fight Card) Rory Markham continues his success with a Rashad Evans-esque roundhouse knockout of Brodie Farber. CB Dollaway tricks us all with a unique (but self-proclaimed favorite) Peruvian necktie choke on Jesse Taylor (I wanna try that one!). The latest rumor is that Taylor is close to being kicked out of the UFC (again) after disparaging remarks he made about Quinton Rampage Jackson’s latest troubles. Good for him if that is the case. Two strikes and you’re out if you ask me. I was surprised that Kevin Burns lasted as long as he did against a beast like Anthony Johnson, let alone win by TKO over him. Granted the eyepoke caused it, but like Johnson said in his post fight interview, give it up for Burns. Cain Velasquez put Jake O’Brien in a crucifix arms to stop him, while Frankie Edgar showed that he only has one gear (forward) over his decision win over Hermes Franca. Brandon Vera looked very unimpressive over a decision win over Reese Andy (I thought he would walk through him), and finally… the main event! Anderon Silva does it again! We all knew his technical skills would pick apart the brawler in James Irvin, but 1:01 in the first round? WOW! That straight right after catching Irvin’s kick was so short and compact, but the fact that it had enough power behind it to knock Irvin down, woah! I can’t think of anyone who will be able to beat Silva besides Silva.
Affliction Banned (Fight Card) Paul Buentello looked unimpressive yet again against an out of shape, last minute addition in Gary Goodridge. Was really looking forward to seeing watching Aleksander Emelianenko too! Vitor Belfort looked like the Vitor of old and really impressed in his decisive knockout of Terry Martin. Edwin Dewees was overmatched, as expected against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Mike Pyle impressed against a green JJ Ambrose. Renato Sobral vs. Mike Whitehead and Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Negao were snoozers. I didn’t expect that from Lindland. Until this point, it looked like Affliction was a bust (boring as heck). And then… Josh Barnett surprised with an uncharacteristic knockout (jumping left hook) of Pedro Rizzo. Andrei Arlovski vs. Ben Rothwell was a snoozer until the Andrei of old showed up at the end of the second and then into the third when he knocked out Big Ben. And then… HOLY COW! Fedor Emelianenko answered all questions about his #1 ranking when he just ran through Tim Sylvia with a flurry of punch combinations and then a modified rear naked choke using his forearm! W-O-W! Bring on Couture!
Dream 5 (Fight Card)
Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto’s injury was unfortunate, but the show sure did go on. Eddie Alvarez impressed again in a gritty knockout of a tough, game Tatsuya Kawajiri, but suffered an eye injury (from a right cross) in the process. He almost made a critical mistake by thinking Kawajiri was done, but jumped in to finish the job after the referee told him to keep going. Did you see that insanely quick triangle lockup of Caol Uno compliments of Shinya Aoki! Jeez! That was lightning quick and I just had to rewind that like 5 times to watch it carefully! It almost looked like he let Uno out of the guard to set that up. But how about Uno’s heart? That triangle was TIGHT! I cheered when he got out of it! LOL! Joachim Hansen’s arm-bar submission victory over the Black Mamba (Kultar Gill) set the stage for his path to the final. Urijah Faber’s protégé Joseph Benavidez made quick work of Kodo, while Hideo Tokoro stopped Takeshi Yamazaki in the second. That Tokoro guy impresses me with his speed and athleticism. Kuniyoshi Hironaka split open Motoki Miyazawa’s forehead with a straight right, causing the doctor to stop the fight, while Yoshihiro Akiyama used his gi to his advantage to choke out Katsuyori Shibata from the top. Alistair Overeem proved he is a star in the making with an impressive arm lock over an out of shape Mark Hunt. Hansen’s straight left from the top found it’s mark on Aoki’s chin as he jumped on to finish the job. Aoki cried as usual, but you could really feel the pain from Alvarez’s tears during his speech. You know the Alvarez Hansen 2 matchup will be a good one. As a fan, I also want to see the Alvarez Aoki matchup some time in the future.
Talk to me!
Whatchu think? Were my observations pretty accurate or ya got something to say? Holla atcho boy! Have a good week all!
And finally… For those non-MMA fans out there, here’s a snap from yet another Acai Bowl I’m enjoying on this Acai quest, this time from Diamond Head Cove Health Bar off Monsarrat. Look for the first in my two part series on the first of the month at AroundHawaii.com!
), I’ll switch it up a bit for this week’s Fave Five list to include an Olympic star from Hawaii: Bryan Clay. Clay captured gold in the decathlon this year, the last American to do so since Dan O’Brien did it in Atlanta in 1996.
Vitor Belfort looked like the Vitor of old and really impressed in his decisive knockout of Terry Martin. Edwin Dewees was overmatched, as expected against Antonio Rogerio Nogueira. Mike Pyle impressed against a green JJ Ambrose. Renato Sobral vs. Mike Whitehead and Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Negao were snoozers. I didn’t expect that from Lindland. Until this point, it looked like Affliction was a bust (boring as heck). And then… Josh Barnett surprised with an uncharacteristic knockout (jumping left hook) of Pedro Rizzo. Andrei Arlovski vs. Ben Rothwell was a snoozer until the Andrei of old showed up at the end of the second and then into the third when he knocked out Big Ben. And then… HOLY COW! Fedor Emelianenko answered all questions about his #1 ranking when he just ran through Tim Sylvia with a flurry of punch combinations and then a modified rear naked choke using his forearm! W-O-W! Bring on Couture!
