KAILUA-KONA — The loss Scotty Hao will never forget is one that came before his days as a professional MMA fighter.
Tipping the scales at nearly 250 pounds, Hao was nearly knocked out after climbing a dozen stairs, feeling winded and exhausted when he reached the top carrying two cases of soda.
“I gassed out at the top. I couldn’t breathe,” Hao said. “After that, I made the commitment to go to the gym once a week. Then that turned into twice a week and it kept going.”
Fast-forward four years and the 25-year-old Hao walks around more than a few weight classes lighter — registering at 160 pounds for his most recent fight — and boasts a solid 3-1 record as a pro fighter.
The lone blemish on Hao’s record came in his most recent fight at King of the Cage in Oregon in May. The fight at the event — dubbed “Headstrong” — went the distance, but Hao came up short, losing in a split decision to Jake Smith.
Regardless of the final scorecard, Hao saw the fight as a major win, as the exposure and relationships have paved a solid path for the Kona native going forward. His scrap was dubbed the fight of the night at the event, and by the final round, Hao had the majority of the crowd chanting his name.
That’s a quite an achievement for a fighter thousands of miles from home, fighting against a hometown guy in Smith, who’s from Portland.
“That fight was epic. I just had fun — probably the most fun of my life,” Hao said. “When I fight, I don’t care too much about winning and losing. I just want the guy to remember who he fought.”
Hao — along with friends, family and fans — are set to relive the action during an airing of the fights on Monday at Umekes in Kona at 1 p.m. The card will be broadcast on MAVTV, a channel that hits more than 50 million households.
“It’s worth taking your lunch break for,” Scotty’s wife/manager Alexus Caires-Hao said. “And it’s at Umekes. Who doesn’t like Umekes?”
Taking Kona with him
Hao has a lot of pride for his hometown, and it’s something he puts behind every punch and kick he throws.
But when the “Powered by Poke” fighter is on the mainland and tells people he is from Kona on the Big Island, it’s usually met with a puzzled look. That’s probably because West Hawaii hasn’t exactly been a hot bed for MMA talent, like the east side of the island, which can lay claim to fighters like Brad Tavares and UFC Hall of Famer BJ Penn.
“Wherever I go, the first thing people ask me when they hear I’m from the Big Island is if I’m fighting out of Hilo,” Hao said.
He hopes to change that.
“I want to help put Kona on the map,” Hao added. “That pride is with me wherever I go and I’ll go as far as my body takes me.”
He admits that pursing a career as a fighter is no easy job, especially with the high cost of living on the islands. It takes a real team effort.
“My wife does all the hard work — the paper work and stuff. I just train and fight,” said Hao, who works construction in the meantime to help pay the bills. “Everybody needs to be on board for something like this to work.”
The family aspect is big for Hao, who is a father to two daughters.
Knowing that they and many other Kona youths are watching his journey, Hao tries to be a good role model. When it comes to pre-fight festivities, he steers well clear of a Floyd Mayweather or Conor McGregor type of mentality.
“I try not to talk bad about anyone or rub their name in the dirt,” Hao said. “My family has always taught me to be respectful, so the least I can do is show them they taught me something.”
Hao fights out of Average Joe’s in Kona, and has kept a pretty small circle of coaches, training partners and sponsors. He has recently branched out, bringing on a few new coaches and ramped up his focus on taking care of his body during training and his nutrition.
“All the little mistakes I made, I want to get cleaned up,” Hao said. “In recent fights I’ve been trying to impose my will. That works, but I had to take a lot of hits. It’s not a great long-term strategy to have success in this sport.”
On the radar
Hao makes no secret about it — he has lofty goals, but feels like he is currently within a narrow window of opportunity to keep moving up levels.
“I know my time line. I feel like from 25 to 30 years old, that’s the time you have to do something,” he said. “I don’t want to say I could have done it. I want to be able to say I tried to make it as far as I could. That’s very important to me.”
Hao said he’s already had conversations with organizations like Bellator and even the UFC. However, they want to see more film of his fights, something he is building with his King of the Cage appearances.
Next up for Hao is a return to Oregon for his second King of the Cage fight on Aug. 5. This time he will try to take down Ryan Walker (7-3), who fights out of Vancouver, Washington.
Walker is coming off a pair of losses, but fights out of Gracie Barra Portland, the same association as Hao’s last opponent. However, Hao doesn’t feel like the book is out on his style. He’s been working on a few surprises for his next bout.
“They aren’t going to see what’s coming this time,” Hao said with a patented smile. “I changed everything.”
