Brahimaj was happy to walk forward, working some kicks in against the massive Punahele Soriano, who previously fought at heavyweight outside the UFC, and middleweight when he first joined the promotion. Brahimaj worked lefts and rights, and even wobbled Soriano prior to the midway point of round one care of a left. It was his body kicks, however, that were Brahimaj’s most consistent weapon early.

Soriano would try to answer those kicks with a body kick of his own, only to nearly have it caught. He’d regroup, and they’d fight on and move to the second.

Another kick from Brahimaj opened the second frame; he’d later look to take Soriano down, getting a body lock in place from the back. Soriano used the fence to prop himself up, but wasn’t out of the woods just yet as Brahimaj stayed all over him. He’d eventually reverse, getting Brahimaj’s back against the cage. And there they stayed, until an overdue separation by the ref for the lack of action with less than a minute left. Brahimaj would get it down and take the back later, but there wasn’t enough time for him to work.

Punahele Soriano opened the third round spamming a few high kicks and managed to hurt Brahimaj! Rather than take advance however, Brahimaj managed to get the fight down. Puna would get up, but Brahimaj stayed on him like a wet blanket. He’d then wrap up a standing guillotine, and ended up going down with it, giving up position in the end. Soriano didn’t have much time to work from the top, and Brahimaj finished the round with a second, half-hearted guillotine attempt.

Come the scorecards, it was Soriano with the decision win, extending his current win streak to four.

Official Result: Punahele Soriano def. Ramiz Brahimaj by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

The post UFC Houston: Punahele Soriano Extends Win Streak, Tops Ramiz Brahimaj appeared first on Cageside Press.

Soriano (12-4) was candid about the mixed emotions that followed. While his performance marked a step back in the right direction, the Hawaiian middleweight admitted that the victory didn’t bring the relief he expected.

“Physically I feel good. All glory to God. I’m healthy, I got the win,” Soriano told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“Emotionally I’ve been sad. Disappointed whole time. Seeing Edmen (Shahbazyan) win is like the only thing that made me super happy. That was really cool.”

Soriano reflected on the emotional weight he’s carried throughout his recent struggles. Despite picking up the win, he wasn’t satisfied with his performance inside the octagon. The middleweight standout admitted that the fight didn’t reflect the aggressive, crowd-pleasing style he’s known for.

“I’m embarrassed of all the people that had to watch me fight like that. That’s not the way I fight. I normally go out there and bang and like, I don’t know, cool performances,” he said.

“Maybe the pressure got to me or something.”

“I was going to be like, ‘I’m getting worried that I’m next to the title fight!’ as like a joke. There’s no way I can say that. Not even as a goof,” Soriano said laughing.

“I just got to try and find a way to make myself happy tonight, and enjoy the win.”

With rumors of a potential event in Hawaii, the thought of missing that opportunity was never far from his mind.

“That was kind of part of the pressure too,” he laughed.

“I was like man I don’t want to get knocked out and cut before the UFC goes to Hawaii!”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Punahele Soriano above.

The post Punahele Soriano Wins at UFC 320, Calls Performance ‘Embarrassing’ appeared first on Cageside Press.

Punahele Soriano scored a big takedown about a minute in, with Nikolay defending with a guillotine. That didn’t work, and Soriano completed the attempt. From there, he was able to posture up and landing some smashing elbows with Veretennikov stuck with his back to the fence.

Soriano ate up a lot of time in that position, landing several solid blows with Veretennikov completely unable to create space or scramble out. Soriano would at times back off and re-engage, with Veretennikov throwing out a haphazard upkick or two that didn’t really come close to catching the Hawaiian. A dominant first round from Puna.

In the second, another solid round from Punahele Soriano, who got the fight down late in the round. Veretennikov did a better job defending this time. He’d have to go right back to defending in round three, with Soriano exploding into a takedown and Veretennikov again working a guillotine to defend. For a time, Veretennikov stayed upright, back to the fence, until Soriano ripped him off it and slammed him to the canvas. On top, there was no moving Soriano, though he wasn’t doing enough damage to hold the position. Instead, the ref stood them back up inside the final minute, with Nikolay Veretennikov going back to his guillotine and pulling guard.

That was deep, and Soriano looked uncomfortable, though he gave the thumbs up and rode it out the the final bell, breaking free just prior to the horn and landing a few big strikes to underscore what was a sure victory.

Official Result: Punahele Soriano def. Nikolay Veretennikov by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

The post UFC 320: Punahele Soriano Out-Muscles Nikolay Veretennikov, Wins Decision appeared first on Cageside Press.

Mackenzie Dern

This was such a big win for Dern. It was her first time winning consecutive fights in over four years and her first finish since April of 2021. She could only manage a 1-1 record every year since 2021. Not only that, but this win also saw her avenge her first ever professional loss against Ribas, who was 6-1 in the UFC at 115 lbs.

With Tatiana Suarez set to get the next shot and Virna Jandiroba seemingly next in line, Dern will need to add to her win streak in order to cement herself as the next title contender. Suarez has had trouble staying healthy for a while, so you would think that the promotion has told Jandiroba to stay ready in case they need a backup. That frees up Yan Xiaonan who is ranked #2 and is also in need of another win to stay in the title picture.

The two have fought before and Yan got the nod, but it was a contested majority decision that a lot of people thought should have been a draw. A rematch at this point is a very solid option.

Dern’s next fight: Yan Xiaonan

Santiago Ponzinibbio

Ponzinibbio was once a highly ranked contender with a lot of promise, but he unfortunately lost over two full years of his prime due to health concerns. Now that he’s 38, it’s been evident for some time that his best is behind him. This win over Carlston Harris in the UFC Vegas 101 co-main event keeps him active and stops what could have been a three-fight skid, but the matchmaking should be done with his decreasing level in mind.

Fellow 38-year-old Daniel Rodriguez was once ranked as well and though he stopped his losing streak this past October, it has also been clear that he has lost a step. A matchup between the two of them is age and level appropriate.

Ponzinibbio’s next fight: Daniel Rodriguez

Cesar Almeida

When Armen Petrosyan lost to Shara Magomedov at UFC 308, I had him fight the winner of this fight between Almeida and Abdul Razak Alhassan in our matchmaking article. However, he’s since been booked against Brunno Ferreira on March 8.

At 36 years of age, Almeida has made it a point to be active, knowing the clock is ticking. He fought three times in 2024, going 2-1 with the only hiccup being a competitive split decision against Roman Kopylov, a very good middleweight who will we talk about shortly. Rodolfo Vieira and Andre Petroski will fight each other in a month. The winner will be on a three-fight win streak and a matchup with Almeida would make sense. But I’m willing to give Almeida a bigger push than that. At 36, let’s see what he’s really got. Let’s see him fight the winner of Kevin Holland and Reinier de Ridder, who are set to face each other next week. If Almeida can pass that type of test, then he’ll be ready for the rankings.

Almeida’s next fight: Winner of Holland/de Ridder

Roman Kopylov

Kopylov is a 33-year-old contender who is really coming into his own. Since dropping back-to-back fights against Karl Roberson and Albert Duraev, he’s 6-1 with the only loss coming against Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez who is a serious threat at 185 lbs. Even though they weren’t flawless victories, Cesar Almeida and Chris Curtis are quality wins. He also has a knockout over Punahele Soriano, who fought and won on this card.

In my opinion, those are valid reasons to give Kopylov a ranked opponent in his next fight. The Russian isn’t an inactive fighter by any means, but he’s also no stranger to layoffs of 6 months or more. This type of timeline should align with Michel Pereira’s return, who took a beating back in October.

Kopylov’s next fight: Michel Pereira

Christian Rodriguez

Rodriguez’s last four wins all came against undefeated fighters. The weight misses and the submission loss to Julian Erosa have slowed down his momentum, but at still just 27 years of age, the UFC clearly has something in C-Rod. Often times, going 4-1 with all four wins being 0’s taken and the lone loss coming against a veteran like Erosa would mean that Rodriguez would be getting a big push by the promotion. However, as mentioned, he’s still in his mid-20s, so there really is no rush.

That’s why a fight with a veteran like Ricardo Ramos, who was once the up-and-coming fighter, but has since been used as the measuring stick himself, makes a lot of sense. He and Rodriguez are still both under 30 and are at a similar stage in their careers. They’re both coming off victories, so let’s see who takes that next step.

Rodriguez’s next fight: Ricardo Ramos

Punahele Soriano

Soriano upset the betting line for the second time in a row at Saturday’s UFC Vegas 101, knocking out Uros Medic in just 31 seconds. With that impressive KO, he moved to 2-0 since dropping down to welterweight.

Another former middleweight who is 2-0 since making the cut to 170lbs is Chidi Njokuani. Njokuani used to be quite the action fighter before his last two fights took place mostly in the clinch, but maybe Soriano can bring back some of his old style out of him. Let’s see which former middleweight needs a push at welterweight.

Soriano’s next fight: Chidi Njokuani

The post What’s Next: UFC Vegas 101 Winners appeared first on Cageside Press.

Perhaps that’s why the Hawaiian was so upbeat in the aftermath. Following a knockout of Uros Medic, Soriano was in good spirits, though he told media outlets including Cageside Press backstage at the UFC Apex that he wouldn’t let the victory get him too far up in the clouds.

“First thought was, ‘I still got a job. Still got a job! Still got a job!’ I’m so happy,” Soriano (11-4) exclaimed. “The confidence raises any time you get a win, but I’ve learned that— I’m trying not to get too high on it. I’m not going to let the wins get me too high, not let the losses get me too low. And just go back to the drawing board and continue to get better, because I think that’s the main thing that happened in between this and the last fight, and I think it showed a little bit. Hopefully.”

As for the new addition to the family, that might complicate Soriano’s return.

“It’s hard to say. A high like this, you want to jump back in right away. But I think my wife over anything deserves a week of just me and her spending time together, maybe a little getaway,” he stated. “I spent so much time away from her in camp, while she had to be pregnant alone. Like a terrible father, just being a terrible father away from her eight to nine hours a day. But I’m ready to devote time back to her.”

The pregnancy did have an unexpected impact on the Medic fight. First, there was how much brighter it made Soriano’s life. “I was so excited, and every appointment, every ultrasound, every whatever that we go through, kind of opens up my eyes a little more like ‘oh it is real! Woah! Woah!’ Every news we get about the baby is so much better, and so much [brighter].”

Then, it had the effect of putting things in perspective. “It kind of made the fight a little less stressful. The magnitude of the fight wasn’t quite there. I knew I had my baby, I knew I had my wife. To me, my baby was just so much more important. Obviously I want to win, but the magnitude of it just went down a little bit.”

In the end, “I feel like I just wasn’t tied down to the results this time,” Soriano added. Backstage, he admitted that he’d envisioned getting hit with Medic’s uppercut. “A couple times I visualized that, I was like ‘oh I hope not.’ But I wasn’t being tied down to the results. I knew that regardless I had my wife, my dogs, my baby to go home to, and they’re going to love me regardless of the outcome.”

Watch the full UFC Vegas 101 post-fight press conference with Punahele Soriano above.

The post Punahele Soriano: Wife’s Pregnancy Lessened Magnitude of UFC Vegas 101 Fight appeared first on Cageside Press.

The bout was Hawaiian Soriano’s second since dropping down to welterweight; he entered off a win over Miguel Baeza. Medic was likewise coming off a single victory, in his case over Tim Means.

Entering the contest Medic was a solid betting favorite (-225) at online sportsbooks. He quickly proved the odds-makers wrong, however. Both fighters started round one in the southpaw stance with Soriano pressing forward immediately. Soriano threw a left straight followed by a right hand that shut Medic’s lights off. With his opponent crashing to the canvas, Soriano pounced delivering some brutal ground and pound to end the fight. This was the first finish for Soriano in the UFC‘s welterweight division, earning a knockout in just 31 seconds.

Following the fight, Punahele Soriano had enough energy to fire off some push-ups in the card. In his post-fight interview, Soriano revealed he and his wife have a baby girl on the way, who he stated was due in June. With that to consider, Soriano doesn’t know if he will fight again before the big day. Regardless, this was a statement win for the Hawaiian fighter who added another knockout to his highlight reel.

Official Result: Punahele Soriano def. Uros Medic by knockout (punches), Round 1, 0:31

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Nassourdine Imavov

Despite the controversial stoppage, Nassourdine Imavov was impressive in his second main event opportunity, climbing the ladder by knocking down number four ranked middleweight Jared Cannonier. Imavov will move up from number seven as he continues his rise which was halted briefly by a loss to Sean Strickland and no-contest against Chris Curtis.

Imavov now steps into an elite, and muddy, echelon of potential middleweight title contenders. Himself, Strickland, Israel Adesanya, Khamzat Chimaev, Robert Whittaker, and formerly Cannonier are all potentially one win away from the belt. As the newest of the pack, it’s safe to say that Imavov is towards the back of the line with this bunch, but with a number one contender fight he could earn a shot.

Chimaev and Whittaker are fighting already, and Adesanya is rumored to be the next challenger for the belt. Therefore the problem is that the logical contender is Strickland, who just beat Imavov a year and a half ago. Still, when you get down to it, it’s truly the only thing that makes sense, since rematches aren’t usually the UFC’s jam.

Imavov’s Next Fight: Sean Strickland

Dominick Reyes

After nearly five full years, Dominick Reyes has earned a win in the UFC octagon again. When he lost a decision, which many felt was erroneous, to champion Jon Jones in 2020, it was assumed that he would be back sooner rather than later. Three straight knockout losses changed that, but by fighting through the fire to finish Dustin Jacoby, Reyes announced to the world that he is back.

Given his fifteenth rank in the division, Dom will not be in a title fight in short order. But the ranks are ripe for the climbing. To start with, the newest member of the 205-lb top fifteen seems like a logical opponent for Reyes. Bogdan Guskov entered the rankings when he knocked out Ryan Spann, the last man to knock Reyes out, so it would be interesting to see how Dominick fairs against him. Also, Guskov is one of the few unbooked LHWs at present.

Reyes’s Next Fight: Bogdan Guskov

Raul Rosas Jr.

Raul Rosas Jr. faced adversity in a tough first round against Ricky Turcios at UFC Louisville, but the youngest fighter in the UFC (and in the promotion’s history) kept at it and found his way to a rear-naked choke win the next round. Rosas improved his record with the promotion to 3-1.

Still, at 19 he is way too young to begin pushing up the rankings in earnest. Let him go the Chase Hooper route. He can fight guys like Chad Anheliger, Christian Quinonez, and Kleydson Rodrigues for years. As a matter of fact, Anheliger is the perfect opponent for Rosas’ next fight.

Rosas’ Next Fight: Chad Anheliger

Brunno Ferreira

‘The Hulk’ roared again as Brunno Ferreira blazed his path to victory in blood, this time painting it with his elbows. His two spinning elbows which got the knockout were a thing of beauty. Ferreira may never be champ or even a ranked fighter, but he is sure to entertain for years to come.

He could fight any number of middleweights like Gerald Meerschaert, Rodolfo Vieira, or Jacob Malkoun. But one option that may come out of left field is Bruno Silva. In many ways ‘Blindado’ was just like Brunno Ferreira, before Ferreira was himself: power striking, reckless abandon, and Brazilian athleticism on full display. Silva is getting old but has been losing to near-ranked fighters, so the step down in competition would be a appropriate one.

Ferreira’s Next Fight: Bruno Silva

Zach Reese

Zach Reese’s sophomore effort in the UFC went better than his first, as this time he ended up on the right side of the highlight-reel first round knockout. At 7-1 he is highly inexperienced, but his 6’4″ frame at middleweight is promising.

Just last week another great athlete fought when Cesar Almeida lost a split decision to Roman Kopylov. Reese is perhaps an opponent at a more realistic experience level for Almeida than Kopylov was. It’s a fair bout and an entertaining one.

Reese’s Next Fight: Cesar Almeida

Punahele Soriano

Welterweight Puna came late to the welterweight party but he appears to be absolutely ready to stay. The Hawaiian was known as a striker for most of his career, but dominantly out-wrestled Miguel Baeza in his 170lb debut, setting several records in the process.

Now at 4-4 in the UFC, Soriano has to fight someone like Bassil Hafez next. A new talent who went to war with Jack Della Maddalena and Mickey Gall in his first two UFC fights, Hafez would truly test Puna on the ground and feet. With both at .500 in the UFC and having competed within a week of each other, the matchup makes sense.

Soriano’s Next Fight: vs Bassil Hafez

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Baeza, known for thrilling finishes and a war with Santiago Ponzinibbio, had missed all of 2023, leaving the question of ring rust up in the air.

Early on at the KFC Yum! Center, Baeza put Soriano on the fence; later, he’d wrap up a guillotine, though when Soriano pulled free, he was in position to do some damage. Baeza would survive, later locking up a heel hook. Soriano gutted it out, and landed some heavy blows from a seated position, but still Baeza held onto the limb. More heavy blows from Soriano were followed by a roll, with Miguel holding onto the leg. This time, he went after a kneebar, but Soriano survived, then went after Baeza back on the feet, only for the horn to sound.

A crazy first round, with Soriano showing he had clearly held onto his power despite dropping 15 pounds. Round two opened with a Baeza front kick to the body; Soriano answered with a takedown, and nearly took the back, with Baeza rolling. Soriano was able to rip the body and land a few hammer fists to the head; Baeza closed up his guard, for the time being accepting the position. Soriano stayed busy on top while Baeza hunted for an arm-bar. That didn’t happen, and Soriano opened up, dropping bombs until Baeza rolled to his knees out of desperation.

Punahele Soriano was able to control from a three-quarter position, not quite taking the back, pounding away with short punches, not quite able to put Baeza away.

Miguel Baeza needed to switch things up in the third, but instead was immediately taken to the fence, and taken down, by Punahele Soriano. The Hawaiian was having his way with Baeza, and it seemed like the ref was getting ready to make the call. Baeza rolled to his knees, doing just enough to stay in the fight. Soriano, meanwhile, landed punch after thudding punch to the side of Baeza while the pair continued the grappling battle. If Soriano was slowing, meanwhile, Baeza appeared exhausted.

The fight was never close, the outcome never in question as Soriano earned himself a one-sided decision win to open the UFC Louisville main card.

Official Result: Punahele Soriano def. Miguel Baeza by unanimous decision (30-25, 30-25, 30-27)

The post UFC Louisville: Punahele Soriano Overpowers Miguel Baeza in 170lb Debut appeared first on Cageside Press.

Weight-cutting is the ultimate test of discipline and willpower. Many fighters in the sport consider it very unprofessional to miss weight.

In this series, we will shine a light on select fighters who cut a massive amount of weight, who have missed weight multiple times in the past, who have made weight-class changes, along with how the weight-cut and weigh-in could affect possible upcoming match-ups. Basically, every aspect of weight-cutting and how it affects the fight game.

Punahele “Puna” Soriano (9-4 MMA, 3-4 UFC)

*Welterweight (170lbs.): 0-0 (MMA)

Middleweight (185lbs.): 4-0 (MMA), 1-0 (CS), 3-4 (UFC)

Heavyweight (265lbs.): 1-0 (MMA)

Punahele will make his career debut at 170lbs. at UFC Louisville against Miguel Baeza. The 31-year-old doesn’t seem to have competed at the weight since he wrestled at 171lbs. in high school. Soriano would go on to wrestle division III in college at Wartburg College in Iowa at 197lbs.

After making his pro MMA debut at heavyweight, Punahele competed in the middleweight division, where he has been a resident of ever since. Soriano was scheduled to compete at welterweight, once, when he was slated to fight George Frangie in April of 2018. The fight would ultimately be cancelled prior to the bout and not be revisited.

Soriano defeated Jamie Pickett on the 2019 season of the Contender Series and started off hot in the UFC with two, first round finishes over Oskar Piechota and Dusko Todorovic. Unfortunately, Soriano has gone 1-4 since, with his only win coming in 2022, via second-round finish against Dalcha Lungiambula.

The turbulence in the octagon likely explains at least some of the reasoning behind the move down to welterweight. And at just 5’11”, with a 72.5″ reach, Soriano’s size explains some of the decision as well.

The Hawaiian spoke about his weight to media on Thursday, ahead of UFC Louisville:

“Woke up at 181 today. Kind of chilling. It’s funny- I’ve been saying it was harder to maintain that bigger frame than it’s been to get down here.” Soriano went on give further insight on his past size saying, “I think I’m just not a bigger like- I’m not a bigger body. – I thought I was, all my friends are, so I thought I was a middleweight- and I figured out I’m not.”

Punahele went on to reveal that he mostly hovered around the 190lbs. range while in camp. And said that he would compete at a shockingly low fight weight for “basically all” of his fights at middleweight:

“One fight in particular (I) weighed in at 185, fight day I was 186. So, I was like, there’s no way.”

Undoubtedly, Soriano will be a fighter for fans to pay attention to on the scale. And a fighter to watch in the octagon, as he takes on another fighter in Miguel Baeza, on a 3-fight skid, who also has his back against the wall.

Can Punahele Soriano keep his power at welterweight and find his way back into the win column at UFC Louisville?

The post The Weight Cutting Chronicles: UFC Louisville – Career Middleweight Punahele Soriano Moves to Welterweight appeared first on Cageside Press.

This, from a fighter whose pro debut came at heavyweight. Having lost two straight and 1-4 in his past five, however, has Soriano looking for a change. He makes his welterweight debut against Miguel Baeza, who has lost three straight and been on the sidelines since April of 2022, though Soriano doesn’t expect the time off to be a factor.

“No, I don’t believe in ring rust. I think he’ll be sharp, dangerous as ever,” Soriano stated during this week’s UFC Louisville media day. “Probably more dangerous. We’re in similar situations, and I understand the mindset I was in for this camp. I assume he was kind of in that same mindset, so I expect the most dangerous from the go.”

As for how his power transfers to the welterweight division, Soriano is hoping he’ll be as strong as ever in the cage come Saturday at the KFC Yum! Center.

“I really hope so. I felt just as strong throughout the whole camp,” Soriano revealed. “I actually feel even better. According to the PI, I got stronger somehow.”

That’s a scary prospect for any opponent, as Punahele Soriano is known for his KO power. Aside from his physical prowess, however, Soriano has been working on the mental side of his game.

“Just growing every day. Been working with a sports psychologist at the PI who has really helped me just kind of put things in perspective, organize my life,” Soriano explained. “I feel like I’m cutting out the BS, cutting out the negative thoughts, cutting out all the stuff I don’t need to see and just looking at what’s going to benefit me.”

That includes social media and the often unpleasant stream of negativity that comes with it. Which has led to Soriano stepping away from that. “I felt like I was addicted. I couldn’t look away from it. I wanted to see every comment. A lot of it was, I didn’t want my family to see it. Some guy says ‘oh you’re d*ckhead, whatever, blah blah blah,’ then my friends and family jump on him- I don’t want them to get into that.”

Soriano opted to install software on his phone that limits him from social media apps, the end result being that he’s much happier. “I kind of just stopped caring.”

Watch the full UFC Louisville media day appearance by Punahele Soriano above.

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