HONOLULU (HawaiiNewsNow) – When he’s not rushing to the scene of blazing fires on Oahu, you can likely find Kona Oliveira in two other places.

He’s either flying down a massive wave at break-neck speeds or inside a cage beating down an opponent.

The 26-year-old from Kahuku recently went viral for shredding a monster swell at Peahi off Maui, the same day the Eddie Big Wave Invitational was running at Waimea Bay.

“When you’re a kid you bombed a hill on a bike and your chain comes off and you don’t have breaks, it’s kind of what it felt like” said Oliveira.

With the clip of his epic ride shared across multiple social media accounts, thousands around the world are now getting introduced to Oliveira’s extreme lifestyle.

If paddling out to waves as big as skyscrapers wasn’t intense enough, Oliveira’s other passion is just as dangerous.

The North Shore native is also a professional fighter with a 3-2 record, including bouts in promotions like Bellator and the Legacy Fight Alliance, which is a pipeline to the UFC.

When comparing which sport is scarier, Oliveira says “You kind of know who you’re fighting for the most part and you can kind of prepare for it. It’s definitely more nerve-racking leading up to it because every single day, you know on this date someone’s coming in to you know try rip your head off. Surfing big waves on the other hand, there’s no ref when you fall on one of those waves, there’s no one to pull you out of there, there’s no human on this planet that has that power.”

With hobbies like fighting and big wave surfing it may not shock you to find out that Oliveira doesn’t have a desk job.

Instead of clocking in at an office, Oliveira works as a Federal Firefighter serving the Helemano Military Reservation.

Although you may think Oliveira was chasing another adrenaline rush, he says he joined the force in February 2024 to provide a stable income for his family after the birth of his first daughter just a few months prior.

“It’s a whole other thing I didn’t realize I love till I got in which is pretty cool. It’s definitely a humbling experience to be able to like go out and serve the community and and help out.” Oliveira says.

Looking ahead, Oliveira is now training for his next fight in March. But while he works on his strikes and grappling, he says he plans to continue squaring off with some familiar foes, the giants sets at ‘Jaws’.

“As long as I got money in the bank account and the baby is taken care of, I’m out there surfing.”

Copyright 2025 Hawaii News Now. All rights reserved.