UFC 306: Merab Dvalishvili defeats Sean O’Malley to win the UFC bantamweight title
Merab Dvalishvili appeared eager and relentless at UFC 306. Most importantly, he looked like a champion.
Now he also has the matching belt.
Over the course of 25 minutes, Dvalishvili knocked out UFC bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley one after the other, winning by unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47), continuing a UFC bantamweight record of 11 consecutive wins. Facing a deadly striker in O’Malley, Dvalishvili maintained his manic pace until O’Malley gasped for air in the championship rounds.
“The Machine” just kept coming, even though O’Malley’s punches left cuts on his face. Several times O’Malley was not only knocked to the ground, but thrown to the mat, and the striking specialist had no answer for the Georgian on the ground.
There were odd moments, however. The fight was stopped just seconds into the first round when Dvalishvili apparently got into an argument with O’Malley’s trainer, Tim Walsh. There was also an, shall we say, incident where Dvalishvili kissed O’Malley while standing at the fence, then stood up and walked away four seconds before the end of the second round, giving O’Malley enough time to get up and land another punch.
O’Malley was still able to show enough in the third and fifth rounds to avoid a shutout, but Dvalishvili had such a clear advantage that the entire crowd at the Sphere should have known that O’Malley needed a finish. He didn’t get it.
In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko regained her UFC flyweight belt with a masterful performance in her trilogy fight against Alexa Grasso. The future Hall of Famer defeated her opponent 45-18 while dominating her on the ground, landing 8 of 12 takedown attempts and logging more than 16 minutes of ground control.
Grasso had some moments, notably a guillotine in the fourth round that held Shevchenko for about a minute, but ultimately came to nothing.
In the background of all of this, literally, were the Sphere’s stunning visual effects. The UFC reportedly spent $20 million – ten times more than a regular card – on the high-tech venue and its giant, circular LED screen, and it all combined to create a once-in-a-lifetime experience, with special “Noche UFC” films between fights in honor of Mexican Independence Day.
Here’s how it all went down according to Yahoo Sports:
Live153 updates
UFC 306: Sean O’Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili
Saturday, September 14, 2024 – Sphere in Las Vegas, Nevada
Main Card (Start Time 10:00 PM ET, ESPN+ PPV)
Preliminary round (start 8:00 p.m. ET, ESPNEWS/ESPN+)
Early Preliminary Fights (Start Time 7:30pm ET, ESPN+/UFC Fight Pass)
