Story By: King Eddie

Photo By: Laurie K.

After a long layoff Jon Barnard has been easing his way back into the Hawaii fight mix, but his latest performance against Kelii Palencia thrusted him back into the spotlight, and into the hearts of the local MMA fans.

The war that took place at the latest installment of UP N UP, was no doubt, the fight of the night, and an amazing return to the spotlight for Barnard.

" It was the perfect matchup for me to show all of my skills. He stood with me, we went to the ground. It had everything. He stood in there and took some shots and so did I. It was the perfect matchup."

With the most recent battle behind him now, Barnard doesn't really focus too much on the specifics of future bouts. Instead he feels that as a participant in this great sport of MMA, he doesn't care who or when or where he fights, only that he puts on the best show possible for the fans.

" My goal in this sport is only to fight the best fight. It doesn't matter if I win or I lose, as long as I put on the best fight of the night, that's my goal. At this point I will take on the best that the 135 lb. division has to offer. Basically whoever is the best in the division, I am shooting for them."

Great things will surely come from Barnards return to the scene and MMA Hawaii will be there every step of the way to relay all breaking news to the fans. Keep it logged in to MMAhawaii.com for all the latest updates.

Jon would like to thank God, His Team, his manager Wally, UP N UP for making the fight happen, and Carlos Tangaro.