Trembley, who weighs 158 pounds, is 7-0 as a pro. Puga, who is 29 and weighs 146, is 5-1. <\/p>\n
“He’s a stud,” Trembley said of Puga. “He’s a good fighter. He’s also a professional boxer. He’s also think he’s a brown belt in jiu jitsu. He’s very active on bottom. He’s real crafty … I’m really looking forward to it.”<\/p>\n
They’re one of four undercards en route to the main event \u2014 a welterweight bout between American Namo Fazil (10-1) and Brazilian Kaik Brito (19-6). Season 10 of the Contenders Series begins Tuesday, Aug. 11, as a product of promoter Dana White under the Ultimate Fighting Championship umbrella.<\/p>\n
![\"Taner](\"https:\/\/cdn.forumcomm.com\/dims4\/default\/f1785ac\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/513x400+0+0\/resize\/840x655!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F1f%2F84%2F3ff985f044e2962f2380d4e025c9%2Ftaner-trembley.jpg\")
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Taner Trembley has developed into a successful mixed martial arts fighter after an injury-plagued career as a wrestler at St. Cloud State University.<\/p>\n
Contributed \/ Tapology<\/p>\n
According to <\/p>\n
Tapology.com,<\/a><\/p>\n Trembley is the 187th-ranked MMA fighter in the North America region. He’s also regionally ranked as a lightweight and featherweight. Two of his wins have come by knockout, with the other five by submission. His most recent fight was a Legacy Fighting Alliance bout in which he earned a standing technical knockout at 2 minutes, 25 seconds of round two. For his opponent, Korey Taylor, who’d won six fights, it was the first loss of his career.<\/p>\n On Jan. 16, Trembley used a guillotine choke hold just 3:32 after the opening bell to beat Shaheen Santana, who was 9-4, at the Mystic Lake Showroom in Prior Lake. On Nov. 21, Trembley used the same move to beat Cole Alaxanian, who was 5-1, at 3:57 of the third round. You can find a highlight film almost three minutes long featuring Trembley’s fights at <\/p>\n YouTube.com.<\/a><\/p>\n As an amateur in 2022-23, Trembley was 4-0 with two submissions and two TKOs. In his last amateur bout, he forced a knockout with overhand right to ground punches just six seconds into the fight.<\/p>\n Ironically, the only reason he got into MMA fighting in 2022 was because he had an injury-riddled college career wrestling for St. Cloud State University.<\/p>\n Taner Trembley (right) battles Korey Taylor in an MMA match on April 17, 2026, at Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake.<\/p>\n Contributed Legacy Fighting Alliance<\/p>\n Paying the price at SCSU “I loved the guys there and the coaches, but I just couldn’t fricken’ stay healthy,” said Trembley, who was 0-3 as a junior and 4-1 as a senior.<\/p>\n “It left a bad taste in my mouth,” he said. “I didn’t jump right into fighting. I couldn’t even make it through a season without a major injury happening … My sophomore year, I blew my shoulder out and had labrum surgery and that ended my season. The next year, I blew out my knee, (lateral collateral and medial collateral ligaments). My senior year, I got my cervical spine all messed up. I’ve got bulging discs at every level. I’ve got bone spurs and bulging and herniated discs in my neck.”<\/p>\n Despite not wrestling much, he was a leader for the Huskies, according to coach Steve Costanzo.<\/p>\n “He was a team captain, a great leader in and out of the wrestling room,” Costanzo said. “Just a tremendous person. A hard worker and super competitive and super talented. He got the hard end of the stick when it came to staying healthy.<\/p>\n “He was around during some of our better, most competitive teams here. He was around a lot of great guys. He was in and out of our lineup, but he contributed quite a bit.”<\/p>\n Building a new career “I had a bunch of other buddies on the team that did that,” Trembley said of his major. “It was super easy. I thought, ‘Well, worse comes to worse, I can be a construction worker and drink Busch Light on the weekends.’ That wouldn’t be a bad life.”<\/p>\n His injuries kept him from any competition for three years.<\/p>\n “I was pretty obsessed with wrestling,” he said. “I gave everything to it. I didn’t really see any of the fruits of it in college. I used to think that I chose it, but it’s almost like it chose me. I’m not really sure why I like (MMA) as much as I do. I love the lifestyle that it gives me. I hated being behind a desk. I hate having to show up 9-5 at a place. This gives me an opportunity for a different life than most people. That part is cool. <\/p>\n “It’s given me so much. It’s given me discipline. It’s really matured me as a man and made me a better person, father and husband. I love to fight for whatever reason. It’s like no other feeling when you’re in that cage. It’s such a blissful, out-of-body experience and you can’t really replicate it in any other faction.”<\/p>\n Trembley and his wife, Brittany, have three children (Louden, 5; Rocky, 3; and Tyson, 2) and own and operate <\/p>\n Kiddie Kobras,<\/a><\/p>\n a daycare center in Sartell. <\/p>\n “The electronic recycling company that I worked at for four years, the owners made a daycare for their workers in the same building,” he said. “I got to see (my kids) every day. My wife started running the daycare, the company I was working for ended up selling. Once we got the word they were selling, we asked if we could buy it.” <\/p>\n Taner Trembley (left) battles Korey Taylor in an MMA match on April 17, 2026, at Mystic Lake Casino Hotel in Prior Lake.<\/p>\n Contributed Alliance <\/p>\n![\"IMG_4107.jpeg\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.forumcomm.com\/dims4\/default\/34d1d1c\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/8256x5504+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fa4%2F5b%2F16307c8d48edb65fa57c77105b71%2Fimg-4107.jpeg\")
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Trembley wrestled for the Huskies from 2013-18. His redshirted his first season, then went 17-7 at 149 pounds in 2014-15. The next year, he was 14-5 at 141. <\/p>\n
Trembley earned a degree in construction management in 2019, even though it wasn’t entirely intentional.<\/p>\n![\"IMG_4108.jpeg\"](\"https:\/\/cdn.forumcomm.com\/dims4\/default\/5160af1\/2147483647\/strip\/true\/crop\/8256x5504+0+0\/resize\/840x560!\/quality\/90\/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fforum-communications-production-web.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2Fd0%2F31%2F19f961b04940bd91b782ba14ad91%2Fimg-4108.jpeg\")
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