Former Hiloan
Former Hiloan
wins on Fight Night
Former Hiloan Brad Tavares earned a unanimous decision Wednesday night over Bubba “The Menace” McDaniel at UFC Fight Night 27 in Indianapolis.
The 25-year-old Tavares, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound middleweight who now lives in Las Vegas and trains at Randy Couture’s Xtreme Couture gym, got a 29-28 nod on all three judges’ scorecard for his fourth straight win.
“Thank you to all my fans and followers,” Tavares tweeted after the fight. “Wanted to finish bubba but just couldn’t put shin to chin! Glad I got the w, on to the next! Aloha.”
The former football standout at Waiakea High School improved to 11-1 in his mixed martial arts career and his sixth victory in the UFC octagon. The only blemish on his career ledger is a unanimous decision loss to Aaron Simpson, a former two-time All-American wrestler at Arizona State University, at UFC 132 on July 2, 2011.
The 29-year-old McDaniel, a Texan who trains at Greg Jackson’s MMA gym in Albuquerque, N.M., is now 21-7. The win by Tavares snapped McDaniel’s six-fight win streak.
Both fighters are alumni of the UFC’s reality TV series “The Ultimate Fighter.”
In the evening’s main event, Carlos Condit, the UFC’s No. 2 contender and former World Extreme Cagefighting champion, snapped a two-bout losing streak with a fourth-round TKO victory over Martin Kampmann. The win avenged a 2009 split-decision loss by “The Natural-Born Killer” to the Dane known as “The Hitman.”
Hilo Open badminton
slated this weekend
The 40th annual Hilo Open will be held Friday and Saturday at Hilo Armory.
Organizers expect a variety of 50 badminton participants from Thailand, Oahu and the Big Island. Registration divisions will include Open, A, B, C, D, single and mixed, junior, adult and various senior levels in men’s and women’s divisions.
For more information, contact Floyd Yoshimoto at 960-2818 or Dean Ishimoto at 938-8785.
BIRR to hold 5K,
10K on Sept. 8
The Big Island Road Runners will hold its annual Hilo Bay 5-kilometer and 10K runs on Sept. 8.
Both runs start at 7:30 a.m.
Each participant will receive a dry-fit T-shirt or single, and every finisher will receive a finishers’ medal and there will be age group awards as well as prizes. The event is open to all walkers and runners.
There is a discount for Big Island Road Runners Club members, but all are invited to participate. The run starts and ends at the new Reeds Bay Park on Banyan Drive. There will be post race refreshments.
Runners/walkers can register in advance by mailing their registration form and payment to www.bigislandroadrunners.org or register at the event.
For more information, call Steve Pavao at 430-0267