Speaking of his name, how does a kid from Hawaii end up with a name from a city more than 5,000 miles away?
Simple: his dad is a big Boston sports fan.
Ironically, his parents had never made it to Beantown until this past April. They touched down in the city for this first time and took in a Red Sox game at Fenway Park before heading to Atlanta for their son’s fight.
As for his opponent, Salmon holds Randy Costa up with a high amount of respect. The two nearly fought previously, but when both competed at UFC 236, they became fast friends. Costa described Salmon as “wicked cool,” and Salmon offered Costa a place to stay should he ever end up in Las Vegas, where Salmon lives and trains.
That said, Salmon might find himself hard-pressed to find a friendly voice in TD Garden on fight night due to Costa’s Massachusetts roots.
Or, as Salmon argues, maybe not?