Tag: Punahele Soriano

While sidelined with a broken hand, UFC’s Punahele Soriano reveals fighting severe infection: ‘I think I almost died’

Middleweight Punahele Soriano, who returns at UFC Fight Night 217, explains the medical issues he faced over the past six months.

LAS VEGAS – UFC middleweight [autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag] thinks an infection nearly took his life.

Soriano (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) returns to action after six months on the sideline at UFC Fight Night 217 to face Roman Kopylov. The bout takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

After his last win, a second-round knockout of Dalcha Lungiambula in July, Soriano was sidelined with a broken hand. At media day Wednesday, he revealed that wasn’t the only issue he faced during his time away from the cage.

“I didn’t really tell anyone, but I got super, super sick,” Soriano told reporters. “I think I almost died. I had like shingles, that turned into cellulitis like on my face and under my heart.

“It was funny, I ended up going to the E.R. They had to give me antibiotics and all that crap. But the night before, I remember just laying on the couch and it felt like I was in a chokehold. I was like, ‘This could be the night I don’t wake up.’ I was like, ‘Well, I hope I just wake up.’ And then I went to bed. But I woke up.”

[lawrence-related id=2609027,2609021]

Soriano told the scary story in a jovial manner, and even showed off the discoloration and scarring left on his face and chest from the skin infection.

Now that the infection is gone and his hand is healed, he is anxious to get back to work against a “monster” in Kopylov (9-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC), and set the tone for his team.

“He put away (Alessio) Di Chirico pretty well, and I’m excited to go up against him,” Soriano said. “He’s good everywhere and I’m ready to fight him.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.

[vertical-gallery id=2562853]

[listicle id=2608815]

UFC Fight Night 217 predictions: Who’s picking Sean Strickland over Nassourdine Imavov on short notice?

Check out our staff members’ picks for UFC Fight Night 217, which features Nassourdine Imavov vs. Sean Strickland in Las Vegas.

Imavov
vs.
Strickland		 Ige
vs.
Jackson		 Kopylov
vs.
Soriano		 Pennington
vs.
Vieira		 Barcelos
vs.
Nurmagomedov
MMA Junkie readers’
consensus picks
202-120 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov
(51%)		 ige2023
Ige
(62%)		 soriano2023
Soriano
(68%)		 vieira2023
Vieira
(67%)		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
(88%)
Ken Hathaway
@kenshathaway
215-112 (2022)
trophy copy 2018, 2022 Champion		 imavov2023
Imavov		 jackson2023
Jackson		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Matthew Wells
@MrMWells
209-118 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 jackson2023
Jackson		 soriano2023
Soriano		 pennington2023
Pennington		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Abbey Subhan
@kammakaze
204-123 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 pennington2023
Pennington		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Farah Hannoun
@Farah_Hannoun
203-124 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Matt Erickson
@MMAjunkieMatt
201-126 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 jackson2023
Jackson		 soriano2023
Soriano		 pennington2023
Pennington		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Simon Samano
@SJSamano
201-126 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Mike Bohn
@MikeBohn
200-127 (2022)
trophy copy 2014 Champion		 imavov2023
Imavov		 jackson2023
Jackson		 soriano2023
Soriano		 pennington2023
Pennington		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Nolan King
@mma_kings
192-135 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Brian Garcia
@thegoze
190-137 (2022)
trophy copy 2017 Champion		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
George Garcia
@MMAjunkieGeorge
181-146 (2022)		 strickland2023
Strickland		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 pennington2023
Pennington		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov
Danny Segura
@dannyseguratv
161-166 (2022)		 imavov2023
Imavov		 ige2023
Ige		 soriano2023
Soriano		 vieira2023
Vieira		 nurmagomedov2023
Nurmagomedov

The UFC kicks off its 2023 with a home game, and a short-notice light heavyweight fight tops the lineup.

UFC Fight Night 217 takes place Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

(Click here to open a PDF of the staff picks grid in a separate window.)

In the main event, [autotag]Nassourdine Imavov[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) takes on [autotag]Sean Strickland[/autotag] (25-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC). The fight is taking place at 205 pounds instead of middleweight after Strickland stepped in for Kelvin Gastelum on just five days’ notice. Strickland lost to Jared Cannonier in the UFC’s final event of 2022 a month ago.

Imavov is just a slight favorite at -130 at Tipico Sportsbook; the comeback on Strickland is +110. But Our 11 editors, writers, radio hosts and videographers have Imavov with a near-unanimous picks lead at 10-1.

In the co-feature, [autotag]Dan Ige[/autotag] (15-6 MMA, 7-5 UFC) meets [autotag]Damon Jackson[/autotag] (22-4-1 MMA, 5-2-1 UFC) at featherweight. Ige is a slight -125 favorite at the betting window, and it’s close with our pickers, too. They’ve got Ige with the narrowest possible lead at 6-5.

Also on the main card, [autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) is just a -150 favorite at middleweight against [autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag] (9-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC), but he’s one of our two unanimous picks at 11-0.

[autotag]Raquel Pennington[/autotag] (14-9 MMA, 11-5 UFC) takes on [autotag]Ketlen Vieira[/autotag] (13-2 MMA, 7-2 UFC) in a key women’s bantamweight bout. Vieira is a slight favorite at -125, but she’s got a decent 7-4 lead from our pickers.

And to open the main card, bantamweight [autotag]Umar Nurmagomedov[/autotag] (15-0 MMA, 3-0 UFC) is the biggest favorite on the entire event at nearly 10-1 against [autotag]Raoni Barcelos[/autotag] (17-3 MMA, 6-2 UFC). Not surprisingly, Nurmagomedov is our other unanimous pick at 11-0.

In the MMA Junkie reader consensus picks, Imavov (51 percent), Ige (62 percent), Soriano (68 percent), Vieira (67 percent) and Nurmagomedov (88 percent) are the choices.

Check out all the picks above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.

[listicle id=2608815]

Roman Kopylov: Punahele Soriano has great standup, UFC Fight Night 217 bout ‘could end at any second’

Roman Kopylov doesn’t expect his fight with Punahele Soriano at UFC Fight Night 217 to last too long.

LAS VEGAS – [autotag]Roman Kopylov[/autotag] doesn’t expect his fight with [autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag] to last too long.

Middleweights Kopylov (9-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC) and Soriano (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) square off on Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 217 main card at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. The card streams on ESPN+.

Kopylov earned his first octagon win when he scored a third-round TKO of Alessio Di Chirico this past September in Paris. The Russian finisher sees Soriano’s style making for an exciting fight.

“He’s got great standup, he keeps coming, and I think that’s what we should do,” Kopylov told MMA Junkie and other reporters through an interpreter at Wednesday’s media day. “We should keep standing with him and show the fans an exciting fight. That’s exactly what they’re expecting.”

He continued, “I think the fight could end at any second. I think we’re gonna show a great show.”

Watch the video of Kopylov’s complete pre-fight media availability above.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.

[listicle id=2608815]

Video: UFC Fight Night 217 media day interviews

Before UFC Fight Night 217 on Saturday, the main card fighters are scheduled to speak to reporters at media day.

LAS VEGAS – The 2023 schedule for the UFC begins on Saturday with UFC Fight Night 217, which takes place at the UFC Apex and streams on ESPN+.

A makeshift light heavyweight main event serves as the final act on the card. Sean Strickland (25-5 MMA, 12-5 UFC) replaced the injured Kelvin Gastelum on five days’ notice against Nassourdine Imavov (12-3 MMA, 4-1 UFC) in the headliner.

Before fight night arrives, though, the 10 athletes from the main card spoke to reporters Wednesday at media day, and MMA Junkie was in attendance.

If you happen to miss any of the individual sessions on the live stream, check below for the archived videos of each media day.

Punahele Soriano: Israel Adesanya still ‘the way harder fight’ than new UFC champ Alex Pereira

Alex Pereira might be a new 185-pound king of the UFC, but is he the toughest fight in the division? Punahele Soriano has doubts.

There might be a new king in the UFC middleweight division, but one fighter in the weight class is off the belief the current champion isn’t the toughest fight out there.

After Alex Pereira claimed the belt from Israel Adesanya with a fifth-round TKO at UFC 281 in November, many fighters and pundits voiced a belief that the Brazilian is only champion because he was carefully guided to the top with beneficial stylistic matchups.

[autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag], who is set to meet Roman Kopylov at UFC Fight Night 217, which takes place Jan. 14 at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas and streams on ESPN+, is of the mind that Pereira (7-1 MMA, 4-0 UFC) is a more winnable matchup for many 185-pound fighters compared to Adesanya (23-2 MMA, 12-2 UFC), despite the head-to-head results between striking standouts.

“I still feel like Izzy’s the way harder fight than Alex,” Soriano told MMA Junkie. “Just from that portion where Izzy held him down (on the ground), I felt like that made him the easier fight. But he’s got the nuclear option as well, which is super scary. But I still think Izzy’s way harder of a fight than Alex. And no offense. I don’t want Alex to be mad at me and smash me on the streets for some reason.”

Soriano made it clear he’s not trying to be disrespectful to Pereira. The five-fight octagon veteran knows he’s not anywhere close to the title conversation, so his opinion should be taken with a grain of salt.

It doesn’t mean Soriano (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) isn’t trying to get there, though. He’s looking to start a promising 2023 campaign against Kopylov (9-2 MMA, 1-2 UFC), and will be looking for a highlight-reel result.

“I’ve always kind of wondered if I just keep winning spectacularly,” Soriano said. “Regardless of what anyone says, what happens if from the Dalcha (Lungiambula) fight to this fight to whatever’s next, what if I just keep winning the next one spectacularly? I don’t know. We’ll see what happens. That’s my goal, is just to win the next one spectacularly.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 217.

[vertical-gallery id=2596106]

[vertical-gallery id=2562853]

UFC on ABC 3 bonuses: Seven finishers get $50,000 extra checks

The UFC handed out seven post-fight bonuses after Saturday’s card with all but one stoppage winner getting an extra check.

The UFC handed out seven post-fight bonuses after Saturday’s card with all but one stoppage winner getting an extra check.

After UFC on ABC 3, seven fighters picked up an extra $50,000 for their performances in Elmont, N.Y. Check out the winners below.

Punahele Soriano def. Dalcha Lungiambula at UFC on ABC 3: Best photos

Check out these photos highlighting Punahele Soriano’s TKO win over Dalcha Lungiambula at UFC on ABC 3.

Check out these photos highlighting [autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag]’s TKO win over Dalcha Lungiambula at UFC on ABC 3 from UBS Arena in Elmont, N.Y. (Photos by Ed Mulholland, USA TODAY Sports)

UFC on ABC 3 video: Punahele Soriano KOs Dalcha Lungiambula to get back on track

Punahele Soriano needed a win in the worst way at UFC on ABC 3, and he got the job done in resounding fashion.

[autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag] needed a win in the worst way at UFC on ABC 3, and he got the job done in resounding fashion.

After suffering back-to-back losses following an unbeaten start to his career, Soriano (9-2 MMA, 3-2 UFC) returned to the win column Saturday with a second-round TKO of [autotag]Dalcha Lungiambula[/autotag] (11-5 MMA, 2-4 UFC) in their middleweight bout on Long Island.

Soriano was forced to stay away from Lungiambula’s dangerous strikes in the first round. He brought big power of his own in return, though, and when the second frame began, he landed a huge shot that opened the door for the finishing sequence (via Twitter):

By snapping a losing skid of his own, Soriano sent Lungiambula onto a third consecutive defeat. Soriano was emotional during his post-fight interview with Daniel Cormier, and said he’s been working harder than ever to produce positive results.

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ABC 3.

[vertical-gallery id=2562589]

UFC Fight Night 200 results: Diaz brothers protege Nick Maximov outworks Punahele Soriano

Nick Maximov’s grappling pressure was too much for Punahele Soriano in the UFC Fight Night 200 co-main event.

[autotag]Nick Maximov[/autotag]’s grappling pressure was too much for [autotag]Punahele Soriano[/autotag] in Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 200 co-main event.

Maximov (8-0 MMA, 2-0 UFC) survived some hard early shots from Soriano (8-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) and put his wrestling game to use for the majority of three rounds to win a split decision by scores of 28-29, 30-27 and 29-28 and keep his undefeated record intact.

The middleweight bout was the UFC Fight Night 200 co-headliner at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. It aired on ESPN+.

The contrast in strategy was evident from the outset. Soriano was immediately throwing heavy shots, while Maximov was hunting for the takedowns at any opportunity. Soriano got up from the first takedown, and found an opening to crack Maximov with a combination capped off by a brutal knee that split the nose open. Maximov responded with a desperation attempt to grapple, and it worked out well because he took the back of Soriano from a standing position to regain his wits until the end of the round.

Maximov wasted no time shooting for a takedown to begin Round 2, but Soriano was sharp in his defense and didn’t allow himself to get controlled or held down over the first two minutes. Maximov was relentless, though, and kept on the legs and waist of Soriano near the fence. The damage was minimal, but Maximov burned a lot of time off the clock with control and took some of the spring out of Soriano’s step.

It took less than 30 seconds into Round 3 for Maximov to get on Soriano’s legs and drag him to the ground near the fence. He kept the pressure on, switching between low leg attempts and waist control. Soriano did his best to land short shots and create space, but he appeared to have suffered a leg injury earlier in the fight, according to replays, and couldn’t get his opponent off him for the remainder of the round.

“It was exactly what I expected,” Maximov said in his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping. “He’s a tough Hawaiian. I wish I could’ve got the finish, but it’s all good.”

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 200 results include:

[vertical-gallery id=2232526]

[vertical-gallery id=2232105]

UFC Fight Night 200: Punahele Soriano vs. Nick Maximov odds, picks and prediction

Analyzing Saturday’s UFC Fight Night 200 odds and lines between Punahele Soriano vs. Nick Maximov, with MMA picks, tips and predictions.

In a middleweight title fight on the main card, Punahele Soriano and Nick Maximov meet Saturday at UFC Fight Night 200 – also known as UFC Vegas 47 – at the UFC’s APEX Facility. Below, we analyze the UFC Fight Night: Soriano vs. Maximov odds and lines, with picks and predictions.

The bout can be viewed on ESPN+ with the prelims at 4 p.m. ET and the main card starting at 7 p.m. ET.

Soriano is looking to bounce back after a unanimous-decision loss to Brendan Allen last time out in late July. He had recorded first-round KO/TKO victories in his first two fights at the UFC level, with “Puna” knocking out Oskar Piechota and Dusko Todorovic to get his career with the promotion off to a rousing start.

Maximov made his UFC debut Sept. 25, 2021, at UFC 266 when he picked up a Unanimous Decision victory over Cody Brundage. He also had a UD win over Oscar Cota in Dana White’s Contender Series: Season 4, Week 10. He has five finishes in his seven career fights as a professional, with two via KO/TKO and three by way of submission.

UFC Fight Night Soriano vs. Maximov: Odds and lines

Odds provided by Tipico Sportsbook; access USA TODAY Sports Scores and Sports Betting Odds hub for a full list. Lines last updated at 7:57 a.m. ET.

  • Fight result (2-way line): Soriano -200 (bet $200 to win $100) | Maximov +150 (bet $100 to win $150)
  • Will the fight go the distance? (Yes +125 | No -150)

Play our new free daily Pick’em Challenge and win! Play now!

UFC Fight Night Soriano vs. Maximov: Odds, lines, predictions and picks

Records: Soriano (8-1-0) | Maximov (7-0-0)

Fight result (2-way line or money line)

SORIANO (-200) is a little more expensive than I generally like to wager on a straight-up bet, but it isn’t terribly out of line, especially if you toss it into a parlay.

I also like SORIANO BY KO/TKO OR DQ (+135), as his first wins at the UFC came via KO/TKO, and five of his last seven victories as a professional have ended by way of knockout. Maximov has never lost in his brief pro career, but he also hasn’t faced a fist like Puna.

Over/Under (O/U)

Take NO (-150): FIGHT TO GO THE DISTANCE, as this one should end by way of a knockout for the favorite. Just two of Maximov’s seven career pro bouts have needed the assistance of the judges, while just two of Soriano’s nine career fights have gone the distance.

Watch this card with ESPN+ by signing up here.

Visit MMA Junkie for more fight news and analysis.

If you’re looking for more sports betting picks and tips, access all of our content at SportsbookWire.com and BetFTW. Please gamble responsibly.

Follow Kevin J. Erickson on Twitter. SportsbookWire on Twitter and us on Facebook.

Gannett may earn revenue from Tipico for audience referrals to betting services. Tipico has no influence over nor are any such revenues in any way dependent on or linked to the newsrooms or news coverage. See Tipico.com for Terms and Conditions. 21+ only. Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER (NJ), 1-800-522-4700 (CO), 1-800-BETS-OFF (IA).

[lawrence-newsletter]

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=2559]