Punahele Soriano’s decision to relocate to the welterweight division after spending his first seven UFC appearances competing at middleweight was brought on more by what was taking place in the room at Xtreme Couture than what was happening when he crossed the threshold into the Octagon.
“Honestly, it was more so from training in the gym,” began the affable Hawaiian when asked about his move to the 170-pound ranks ahead of his UFC 320 showdown with Nikolay Veretennikov on Saturday night at T-Mobile Arena. “I’ve been so competitive my whole life that the wins and losses, I dunno —yeah, they suck, and they chip away at you a little, but you can’t let those define you; that’s just one moment of a day.