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Punahele Soriano (born November 22, 1992) is an American mixed martial artist who competes in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. A professional since 2017, he has also fought in the PFL and Titan FC.

Background

As a senior at Kahuku High School in Laie, Hawaii, on the North Shore of Oahu, Soriano was the 171-pound state wrestling champion, after placing third in the state as a junior. In addition to being a high school state champion in wrestling, he was a high school state judo champion. He went on to wrestle Division-III at Wartburg College in Iowa, where he earned All-America honors at the 2014 NCAAs by placing seventh in the 197-pound bracket, in the process becoming the first qualifier from Hawaii.

Soriano's interest in MMA started through friend and current UFC fighter Dan Ige, who invited Soriano to help train MMA fighters in wrestling.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Soriano compiled an amateur record of 4–0, from 2015 until 2016. After making his professional debut in Hawaii on January 28, 2017, at X-1 World Events 45, and getting a first-round submission win, Soriano made his Middleweight and mainland debut on July 29, 2017, at PFL Everett against Jon Gover. He won the bout via first-round TKO.

Soriano faced Rafael Celestino on April 6, 2019, at Titan FC 49. He won the bout via knockout in under a minute.

After picking up a TKO win in just 45 seconds at V3 Fights 69 against James Horne, Soriano faced Jhonoven Pati on October 19, 2018, at LFA 52. He won the bout via a first-round rear-naked choke.

Soriano was invited onto Dana White's Contender Series 17 on June 18, 2019, where he faced Jamie Pickett. He won the bout via unanimous decision, getting a UFC contract in the process and going past the first round for the first time in his MMA career.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Soriano made his UFC debut against Oskar Piechota on December 14, 2019, at UFC 245. He won the fight via knockout in the first round.

Soriano faced fellow undefeated DWCS alumni Duško Todorović on January 16, 2021, at UFC on ABC: Holloway vs. Kattar. He won the bout, getting the TKO at the end of the first round.

Soriano was scheduled to face Anthony Hernandez on June 26, 2021, at UFC Fight Night: Gane vs. Volkov. The pairing was previously scheduled to take place in May 2020 at UFC on ESPN: Overeem vs. Harris, but Soriano pulled out due to undisclosed reasons. In turn, Hernandez pulled out in late May due to a hand injury and was replaced by Brendan Allen, with the new matchup taking place a month later at UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Dillashaw. Soriano lost the fight via unanimous decision.

Soriano faced Nick Maximov on February 5, 2022 at UFC Fight Night 200. He lost the fight via split decision. 12 out of 16 media scores gave it to Maximov.

Soriano faced Dalcha Lungiambula on July 16, 2022 at UFC on ABC 3. He won the fight via knockout in the second round. This win earned Soriano his first Performance of the Night bonus award.

Soriano faced Roman Kopylov on January 14, 2023 at UFC Fight Night 217. He lost the fight via technical knockout in the second round.

Soriano was scheduled to face Sedriques Dumas on June 24, 2023 at UFC on ABC 5. However, on June 15 it was announced that Soriano pulled out due to undisclosed reasons and was replaced by Cody Brundage.

Soriano faced Dustin Stoltzfus on December 2, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 52. He lost the fight via rear-naked choke in round two.

Soriano faced Miguel Baeza in his welterweight division debut on June 8, 2024 at UFC on ESPN 57. After landing a record number of ground strikes, he won the fight by unanimous decision.

Soriano faced Uroš Medić on January 11, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 249. He won the fight by knockout early in the first round.

Championships and accomplishments

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Performance of the Night (One time) vs. Dalcha Lungiambula
  • Most significant ground strikes landed in a bout in UFC history (136) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
    • Most significant ground strikes landed in a UFC welterweight bout (136) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
    • Most total ground strikes landed in a UFC welterweight bout (317) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
  • Second most total strikes landed in a UFC welterweight bout (331) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
  • Highest significant strike differential in a UFC welterweight bout (+137) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
  • Highest strike differential for total strikes in a three-round UFC bout (+309) (vs. Miguel Baeza)
  • Most total strikes landed in a round in UFC history (184 in R3) (vs. Miguel Baeza)

Mixed martial arts record

See also

• List of current UFC fighters
• List of male mixed martial artists

References

1. "Stats | UFC". ufcstats.com. Retrieved October 4, 2020.
2. "Punahele Soriano | UFC". UFC.com. July 5, 2019. Retrieved February 12, 2022.
3. ^ "Ex-Wartburg All-American Soriano earns UFC contract". InterMat. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
4. jim.nelson@wcfcourier.com, JIM NELSON (March 14, 2013). "Wartburg's 'Puna' has learned to love the snow". Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
5. "Punahele Soriano - Wrestling". Wartburg College Athletics. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
6. "DWCS: Meet the undefeated contract winner Punahele Soriano". FanSided. June 20, 2019. Retrieved July 20, 2021.
7. "Punahele Soriano ("Puna") | MMA Fighter Page".
8. Lee, Alexander K. (July 29, 2017). "PFL: Everett Results: Harrison vs. Rodriguez". MMA Fighting. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
9. "Titan FC 49 Results: Soares Stuns and Submits Gomez, Wins Featherweight Title". Combat Press. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
10. "LFA 52 Results & Highlights: Submissions Were the Order of the Night | MMAWeekly.com". October 20, 2018. Retrieved July 19, 2021.
11. MMA, LowKick (June 19, 2019). "Dana White's Contender Series 17 Results: Two Fighters Earn Contracts". LowKickMMA.com. Retrieved June 19, 2019.
12. "Twee nieuwe gevechten toegevoegd aan UFC 245 in Las Vegas". MMA DNA. September 27, 2019. Retrieved September 28, 2019.
13. Shillan, Keith (December 14, 2019). "UFC 245 Results: Punahele Soriano Brutally Knocks Out Oskar Piechota in the First Round". Cageside Press. Retrieved December 15, 2019.
14. Anderson, Jay (January 16, 2021). "UFC Fight Island 7 Results: Punahele Soriano Drops Dusko Todorovic Repeatedly, Remains Perfect". Cageside Press. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
15. John Morgan and Nolan King (March 18, 2021). "Anthony Hernandez vs. Punahele Soriano set for UFC Fight Night in June". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
16. Mike Bohn (April 9, 2020). "Kevin Holland replaces Puna Soriano, meets Anthony Hernandez on UFC's May 16 card". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved March 18, 2021.
17. Mike Heck (May 25, 2020). "With Anthony Hernandez out, Puna Soriano now meets Brendan Allen at UFC event on July 24". mmafighting.com. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
18. Anderson, Jay (July 24, 2021). "UFC Vegas 32 Results: Brendan Allen's Body Work Key in Win Over Soriano". Cageside Press. Retrieved July 24, 2021.
19. Behunin, Alex (November 13, 2021). "Punahele Soriano and Nick Maximov Will Face off at UFC Event on Feb. 5". Cageside Press. Retrieved November 14, 2021.
20. Anderson, Jay (February 5, 2022). "UFC Vegas 47: Nick Maximov Takes Close Split Decision Against Punahele Soriano". Cageside Press. Retrieved February 6, 2022.
21. "Nick Maximov def. Punahele Soriano :: UFC on ESPN+ 58 :: MMA Decisions". www.mmadecisions.com. Retrieved February 16, 2022.
22. Anderson, Jay (June 1, 2022). "UFC Long Island Set to Air on ABC, Multiple Fights Announced for July 16 Event". Cageside Press. Retrieved June 2, 2022.
23. Behunin, Alex (July 16, 2022). "UFC Long Island: Punahele Soriano Knocks Out Former Teammate Dalcha Lungiambula". Cageside Press. Retrieved July 17, 2022.
24. ^ Kristen King (July 16, 2022). "UFC Long Island post-fight bonuses: Matt Schnell's all-time comeback nets him $50,000". bloodyelbow.com. Retrieved July 16, 2022.
25. Bartłomiej Zubkiewicz (November 18, 2022). "Punahele Soriano kontra Roman Kopylov na styczniowej gali UFC Vegas 67". mmarocks.pl. Retrieved November 18, 2022. (in Polish)
26. Val Dewar (January 14, 2023). "UFC Vegas 67: Roman Kopylov Harnesses Body Shots to TKO Punahele Soriano". Cageside Press. Retrieved January 14, 2023.
27. Arshad (April 21, 2023). "Punahele Soriano vs Sedriques Dumas Set for UFC Jacksonville". www.itnwwe.com. Retrieved May 6, 2023.
28. Damon Martin (June 15, 2023). "Punahele Soriano out; Cody Brundage steps in to face Sedriques Dumas at UFC Jacksonville". mmafighting.com. Retrieved June 15, 2023.
29. Heck, Mike (September 20, 2023). "Punahele Soriano vs. Dustin Stoltzfus set for Dec. 2 UFC event". MMA Fighting. Retrieved September 21, 2023.
30. Morehouse, Cade (December 3, 2023). "UFC Austin: Dustin Stoltzfus Bounces Back with Sub of Punahele Soriano". Cageside Press. Retrieved December 3, 2023.
31. Heck, Mike (April 11, 2024). "Punahele Soriano moves to 170, welcomes Miguel Baeza back at June 8 UFC event". MMA Fighting. Retrieved April 12, 2024.
32. Anderson, Jay (June 9, 2024). "UFC Louisville: Punahele Soriano Overpowers Miguel Baeza in 170lb Debut". Cageside Press. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
33. Nikola Novaković (October 12, 2024). "Uroš Medić se vraća u UFC oktagon: Rivala mu dobro poznajemo" (in Serbian). n1info.rs. Retrieved October 12, 2024.
34. Brett Cagle (January 11, 2025). "UFC Vegas 101: Punahele Soriano Takes Just 31 Seconds to KO Uros Medic". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved January 11, 2025.
35. "Record Book - All Division - Fight Stats - UFC". statleaders.ufc.com. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
36. ^ "Record Book - Welterweight Fight Stats - UFC". statleaders.ufc.com. Retrieved June 9, 2024.
37. "UFC on ESPN 57 post-event facts: Punahele Soriano sets multiple new all-time UFC records". MMA Junkie. June 9, 2024. Retrieved June 10, 2024.
38. "Record Book - All Division - Round Stats - UFC". statleaders.ufc.com. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
39. "Punahele Soriano". Sherdog. Retrieved June 28, 2021.

External links

• Professional MMA record for Punahele Soriano from Sherdog
• Punahele Soriano at UFC

• 1992 births
• Living people
• American male judoka
• American male mixed martial artists
• American male sport wrestlers
• Middleweight mixed martial artists
• Mixed martial artists utilizing collegiate wrestling
• Mixed martial artists utilizing judo
• Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters
• People from Kauai County, Hawaii
• Mixed martial artists from Hawaii
• Wartburg Knights wrestlers
• 21st-century American sportsmen