LAS VEGAS — Grand opening, grand closing.
That's the plan for the two Hawai‘i fighters at UFC 329 on Saturday night. Wai‘anae's Max Holloway (27-9) will take on Conor McGregor (22-6) in the main event of one of the organization's most anticipated cards in years.
The preliminary card, which starts at 1 p.m. HST, kicks off with Kamehameha alumnus and Pearl City native Kai Kamaka III (18-7-1) looking to be the first blemish on Englishman Luke Riley's 13-0 record.
"(Fight) camp was good. It was a long camp, and I got to plan it out well," Kamaka told Aloha State Daily in a recent interview. "I'm excited for this fight."
Kamaka debuted in the UFC on Aug. 15, 2020, scoring a $50,000 Fight of the Night bonus after defeating Tony Kelley via unanimous decision. It was around that time that he relocated from O‘ahu to Las Vegas in full pursuit of his MMA dreams.
Kamaka went 1-2-1 in the UFC before signing a free agent contract with Bellator in 2021. After Bellator merged with the PFL in 2023, Kamaka reached the PFL featherweight semifinals before losing a split decision to Brendan Loughnane. From there, Kamaka went 3-1 in regional promotion Tuff-N-Uff. His perseverance was rewarded when he signed another UFC contract, scoring a victory over Dakota Hope at UFC Vegas 115 on April 4.
"I appreciate everything that brought me here, getting to the UFC the first time and being worthy enough to come back again," Kamaka said. "That's a hard feat, but I appreciate all the experience I acquired when I left. A lot of high-level experience. I still had the hunger to come back, but I was still chasing my own goal of being a great martial artist, and I got to do that outside the UFC."
Never one to back down from a challenge, it was Kamaka who asked UFC brass for the chance to take on Riley.
"I asked for Luke Riley. (UFC matchmaker) Sean Shelby asked the names I'd be interested in, and I gave him that name. I thought it was a good prospect, somebody who hasn't really been tested yet but lot of steam behind him, so I thought that was the upside that I had in that fight."
The featherweight fight between Kamaka and Riley became official at Friday's weigh-ins, as both fighters came in at the non-championship limit of 146 pounds.
Given UFC 329's Las Vegas location and Holloway's presence in the main event, a sizable Hawai‘i contingent of fans are expected to be in attendance at the fight. In sharing a card with Holloway for the first time, Kamaka understands the magnitude of the moment and wants to be the islander that starts the night off the right way.
"Very motivating," Kamaka said of being on the same card as Holloway. "It's like the best situation possible for a kid in Hawai‘i. Every kid in Hawai‘i would probably wish they could be on a Max Holloway card, right? I get to do it on a card that he gets to have a rematch against one of the biggest stars in the game. I'm going to be living my dream, living a bucket list moment next weekend, and I get to do it in pretty much the biggest home game you can have, so it's pretty cool. I'm excited for it.
"There were young kids that probably wish they could fight on a Roberto Durán card. Young Mexicans probably wish they could fight in a Canelo Alvarez card, kids probably wish they could fight on a Floyd (Mayweather Jr.) card, and I get to do that with an icon of our Hawaiian culture. I'm super excited to do it, and I'm trying to become a star that night, too."
Sharing a card with Holloway will be a nice moment for Kamaka. The ultimate reward? Sharing the moment with his wife, Amber, and their five children.
"I've been doing this my whole life, since I was a little kid. Shoot, ups and downs, I wouldn't be doing anything else," Kamaka said. "To have my family, it kind of goes hand in hand. They get to see me come back through adversity in different ways, different promotions, and make it back to a big moment, an iconic moment, to where this is probably going to be one of the biggest events, maybe of their lifetime right now, at least.
"For us to kind of share that moment together is pretty cool. I get to teach them a lot of life lessons through fighting. Luckily, I'm good enough to where I can overcome a lot of adversity, and they can see me overcome different obstacles throughout my career. I would say they get to learn how to work hard, to be resilient, to chase after something through fighting. Luckily it's my job, luckily it's something that I grew up doing. It's a blessing."
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Christian Shimabuku can be reached at christian@alohastatedaily.com.
