Hailing from the island of Oahu, Hawaii, Punahele Soriano is the full package. His striking is notorious and Puna’s first-round knockouts are the stuff of viral video fame. But the North Shore local has the skills to control a fight and get the win at any level. His vicious ground game was molded in wrestling, where he ruled as the Hawaiian State Champion in high school. After earning All-America honors at the 2014 NCAA wrestling championships, young Punahele was introduced to the world of mixed martial arts by UFC contender Dan Ige, who needed help training MMA fighters in wrestling. And that’s how Puna caught the cage fighting bug! After making his pro MMA debut in 2017, he shook up the established order by a series of first-round knockouts and submissions in promotions such as LFA and Titan FC. Soon word of the Hawaiian knockout artist spread to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), who invited Punahele to compete on Dana White's Contender Series. Boom! An undeniable performance earned the newcomer a professional UFC contract. Continuing his momentum, Punahele’s Middleweight division debut at UFC 245 ended with a TKO finish within one round – and the hits keep coming! Always learning and constantly improving, Punahele is here for the full journey. Just like his Instagram bio says: “Life’s a garden… dig it!”