| Kenda Perez | |
|---|---|
| Born | Kenda Rae Perez May 18, 1983 [1] Laguna Beach, California |
| Occupation | Model, Host of The Best of Pride FC, The Ultimate Show |
| Height | 1.70 m (5 ft 7 in) |
| Hair color | Brown |
| Eye color | Hazel |
| Website | |
| http://www.kendaperez.com | |
Kenda Perez is a Mexican American model and host. She is currently the host of Best of Pride Fighting Championships which is set to return for its second season in January 2012 on Fuel TV. Perez also hosts a weekly online MMA show on The Bleacher Report website.
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Kenda Perez was born in Laguna Beach, and raised in old-town Orange. She currently resides in Newport Beach, California. Kenda graduated high school from Orangewood Academy,[2] a very small private school in Garden Grove. Her father, Ken Perez, holds a blackbelt in Shitō-ryūi.[3] Her mother's name is Kaye.
Perez owns a Yorkshire Terrier named after her favorite TV show, Dexter.[4] One of her favorite musical artists is Gavin Rossdale, of the rock band Bush.
Before getting into modelling, and becoming the host for The Best of Pride, Perez was attending Orange Coast College. She originally intended on becoming a pre-school teacher.[5] It was during this time that a friend of Kenda's suggested she enter Maxim magazine's Hometown Hotties competition. Perez first entered the competition in 2006, and finished as a top 100 semi-finalist.[6] The next year, Perez was voted as a top four finalists.[7] She was later featured in Maxim magazine,[8] and continued to work with them on numerous promotional events; including an appearance on the TV game show 1 vs. 100.[9]
In 2009, Zuffa LLC (parent company of the UFC) began producing a new show called "The Best of Pride Fighting Championships." The program showcases some of the best fights, and fighters from Pride, including Anderson Silva, Dan Henderson, Quinton Jackson, and Wanderlei Silva. Perez auditioned, and was hired as the host after impressing producers with her natural ability in front of the camera and behind the microphone. The first episode aired on January 15, 2010 on Spike TV.[10] During a Q&A session at the UFC fan expo in Boston (August 2010), Dana White confirmed that Fedor Emelianenko will appear in future episodes.[11]
Season two debuts January 3rd, 2012 on Fuel TV at 7pm (ET) in the United States.
Kenda currently hosts a weekly online MMA show for Bleacher Report. The first episode debuted on August 4th, 2011.
Perez is a popular personality on social networks Twitter and Facebook. She is very accessible to her fans, and shows great enthusiasm towards MMA. Perez even has a day dedicated to her, an online tradition started by the website mmamixer.com. Every Monday is "Kenda Perez Day", which she happily acknowledges on her Twitter and Facebook accounts.