Daniil Donchenko came to UFC Paris looking for a statement win, and unfortunately for Punahele Soriano, he decided to make that statement directly on his face.
Donchenko dropped Soriano with a brutal elbow in the opening round and never really let him back into the fight. Soriano kept marching forward and desperately searching for takedowns, but Donchenko had an answer for just about everything on his way to a dominant victory Saturday night in Paris.
Round 1 – Soriano met Donchenko in the middle and immediately got the jab going before Donchenko rushed in throwing heavy shots. Soriano started walking him down, pushing him toward the fence and forcing Donchenko to work from the outside.
Soriano stayed patient, looking for openings to land something big, while Donchenko kept giving him different looks and trying to make him guess. Donchenko went to the body early with kicks, then started mixing in nasty elbows whenever Soriano got close.
Soriano eventually shot for a single leg and lifted Donchenko’s leg damn near as high as he could, but couldn’t get him down. Donchenko made him pay for the attempt with an elbow.
Then things got wild.
Donchenko closed the distance and landed a huge elbow that dropped Soriano. Soriano immediately grabbed for a takedown while Donchenko hammered away with shots to the head. Soriano eventually gave up on the attempt, and Donchenko rushed after him looking to finish the job.
Soriano ate another big shot and desperately shot again, but Donchenko sprawled and continued landing while Soriano was on the ground.
They eventually got back to their feet, and somehow Soriano was still coming forward and taking the center.
The two traded shots until the horn, but Donchenko clearly landed the biggest moments of the round.
Round 2 – Soriano didn’t come out with much urgency and frankly looked rather tired. His kicks and punches seemed a bit labored with Donchenko not committing too much to his attacks.
Just before the 3 minute mark Donchenko landed a kick to the groin forcing a time out from the ref.
The time out didn’t last long and Soriano got back on his rhythm with Donchenko picking his spots and looking for openings for a finishing shot while conserving energy at the same time. Soriano mixed his attacks up landing low and high, he got in close, and that triggered a flurry from Donchenko that forced him backwards.
Soriano looked for a takedown just before the 1 minute mark, but wasn’t able to get it. Donchenko was flowing and working his game plan picking his spots before firing away with heavy strikes.
Round 3 – The two shared a quick hug before getting right back to business.
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