September 15, (THEWILL) – Merab Dvalishvili claimed the UFC bantamweight championship with a decisive victory over Sean O’Malley at UFC 306 in Las Vegas on 15 September 2024.
The Georgian fighter executed a dominant strategy, consistently taking O’Malley down and controlling the fight with his superior strength. The judges awarded Dvalishvili the win with scores of 49-46, 48-47, and 48-47.
In the co-main event, Valentina Shevchenko recaptured the women’s flyweight title from Alexa Grasso. Shevchenko controlled the fight both standing and on the ground, earning a unanimous decision victory with all three judges scoring the bout 50-45 in her favour. This win avenged Shevchenko’s previous loss to Grasso in March 2023 and settled the score after their controversial draw a year ago.
The main card also featured victories for Ronaldo Rodriguez, Esteban Ribovics, and Diego Lopes in their respective weight divisions. Rodriguez defeated Ode’ Osbourne by unanimous decision in the flyweight category, while Ribovics edged out Daniel Zellhuber in a split decision in the lightweight division. Lopes impressed with a dominant performance against Brian Ortega in their featherweight clash.
Dvalishvili, nicknamed “The Machine”, demonstrated his stamina and wrestling prowess throughout the five-round contest. He successfully neutralised O’Malley’s striking advantage by consistently closing the distance and imposing his grappling game. After the fight, Dvalishvili stated: “I know [O’Malley] is good, but I made him look normal,” and added that he could have gone for “15 rounds more like this.”
The UFC’s next event is scheduled for 28 September 28 in Paris, France. The Fight Night card will be headlined by a lightweight bout between Renato Moicano and Benoit Saint-Denis, continuing the organisation’s global expansion and providing European fans with live MMA action.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
