UFC 306 had a lot to live up to after the hype that Dana White and the UFC had created around the event. There was criticism of the card on paper but all of that changed once the event got underway.
The MMA leader’s use of the ground-breaking Las Vegas Sphere made for an incredible spectacle that we’ve never seen before and seemingly, won’t again for some time. White was very clear that their decision to run the Sphere was because the T-Mobile Arena was already booked for the night that they wanted to do the second annual Noche UFC.
Since the event took place, both fans and fighters have called for the promotion to do it again but there hasn’t been any movement on this since. Endeavour President Mark Shapiro recently spoke about this in a recent statement, making it clear once again that White wants to double down on it being a one of a kind show.
“We do not intend to do another event at the Sphere. That was a one and done, I think we’ve signalled that to the market. Of course, anything can change like rock bands do their farewell tours and seem to stick around for another 20 years but Dana is pretty intent that this is a one and done, that’s why we spent so much, that’s why we made so much out of it.”
“By the way, last time I checked, the Sphere is launching in Abu Dhabi. Dana did say no more events at the Sphere in Vegas, but that doesn’t mean we can’t go to Abu Dhabi. So, I’m looking forward to pursuing that when that gets built, probably two decades from now.”
Mark Shapiro:
Dana did say no more events at the Sphere in Vegas, but that doesn't mean we can't go to Abu Dhabi. So, I'm looking forward to pursuing that when that gets built, probably two decades from now. pic.twitter.com/8fNRI7uGwF
The cut stemmed from an accidental headbutt in the second round and with how big it was, no one would have been surprised to see the doctor wave the fight off before Aldana went out for the third and final round.
That didn’t happen and the former title challenger has got some issues with the way that she was treated in that moment when she looks back at her September outing. In an exclusive Spanish interview with MMA Junkie’s Danny Segura, Aldana says that in her opinion, the doctor and cutman didn’t do their jobs effectively.
“I’ve seen fights stopped for smaller cuts, at least for the doctor to get called to check the cut to see if the fighter should continue,” Aldana said. “Honestly, I thought the approach from the cutman and the commission in the corner was very strange.
“I don’t remember the doctor checking on the cut, and I didn’t get Vaseline. The cutman was putting his weight onto the cut, and I feel like that opened it more. I remember having to posture firmly so I wouldn’t go back because his body weight was on me. I do think it would’ve been best to check the replay and have the doctor check on the cut. On that aspect, I do think it was poorly managed.”
Aldana went on to express that overall, she has mixed feelings on the whole situation and the way it was handled. She is happy that she got the opportunity to continue fighting but also can’t help but weigh up what the potential risks could have been as a result.
“It was risky to continue after seeing he cut and the videos, I mean you could basically see my skull. It was a risk, I could’ve gotten a facial paralysis or had big consequences of it, but that’s how things played out, and fortunately, I’m OK. I do hang on to the fact that I got a small chance to go finish the fight. I’m happy with that. But on the way things were handled by the commission, I do have my doubts.”
Undoubtedly the biggest MMA event of the weekend sees the PFL host the most significant night in the history of the promotion to date. Battle Of The Giants sees the promotion’s biggest ever signing, the former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou, make his long awaited debut.
The main card in particular features several homerun match-ups from the promotion that really shows the strength of the roster and how much it has improved since the Bellator acquisition.
As they prepare for a massive night of fights in Riyadh, PFL CEO Peter Murray spoke about the card in a recent interview with MMA Junkie. In his opinion, Saturday’s event is the clear winner for the biggest and baddest event of 2024 in the MMA world.
He specifically referenced how it stacks up when you compare this weekend’s card to the likes of UFC 300 and UFC 306 which would also be in the same conversation. There was criticism from some fans of both of those events for not having the kinds of cards that would live up to the high expectations on paper.
In hindsight, it’s fair to say that both produced pretty special nights this year, even if some of the big fights at UFC 306 weren’t the most entertaining. Regardless, Murray believes that Battle Of The Giants stands tall not only next to any PFL event, but any MMA event that has taken place this year.
“This is the biggest event of absolutely the PFL company history and the biggest event of the year and, you know, I’m looking forward to stacking this up against, when you look at the cards from UFC 300, The Sphere, but like as it relates to the card, this fight, this event on October 19, biggest of the year, second to none.”
Six months on from an emphatic five-round display to exact revenge on Marlon “Chito” Vera in Miami, “Sugar” had a more difficult 25-minute experience when sharing the Octagon with Dvalishvili.
In the aftermath of the result, O’Malley revealed a long spell on the sidelines awaited him, having fought through a torn labrum at UFC 306.
O’Malley Doesn’t Regret Fighting Through Injury, Expects To ‘Whoop’ Dvalishvili In Rematch
During an appearance on the debut episode of The Ariel Helwani Show on Uncrowned, O’Malley reflected on the disappointing end to his short title reign in Las Vegas last month.
In terms of the injury he competed with, “Sugar” insisted that withdrawing and delaying his second defense was not a possibility, partly down to his confidence when it came to having superiority over “The Machine.”
“I had a torn labrum. 10 weeks before the fight, I f*cking snapped my labrum. It is what it is. … It was unfortunate,” O’Malley said. “No, (I didn’t consider pulling out). UFC Noche, f*cking Merab sucks. There was no reason to pull out.
“No, (I don’t regret not pulling out). Because I’m going to whoop Merab’s ass, and it’s going to make it that much sweeter when I beat him the second time,” O’Malley continued. “Overall, I had a good camp. Way better camp than the Aljo camp. The rib injury was a lot harder to train with than the torn labrum. The labrum, it’s just pain. … I was able to do a lot more.”
O’Malley has little doubt that a second dance with Dvalishvili lies in his future.
“Big” John McCarthy recently addressed Sean O’Malley’s coach after Tim Welch sought clarification on the controversial excessive coaching incident at UFC 306.
Dvalishvili secured a dominant unanimous decision victory over “Suga” to capture the bantamweight title at UFC 306 earlier this month. While the outcome was unquestionably clear at the end of the day, the fight took an unusual turn just moments after it began.
“The Machine” suddenly paused mid-action, gesturing furiously toward his opponent’s corner, prompting referee Herb Dean to step in. Dean reprimanded Dvalishvili for interrupting the match and also gave Welch a warning for overstepping his coaching boundaries, citing the ‘excessive coaching’ rule.
However, veteran referee McCarthy believes Welch’s actions crossed a line and constituted clear misconduct…
McCarthy Cautions Welch On Interference with Opponents During Fights
During a recent appearance on the WEIGHING IN podcast, Welch posed a question to McCarthy, asking how he would have handled the situation if a similar incident to UFC 306’s main event unfolded under his watch.
The renowned MMA referee responded candidly, stating that he would have swiftly issued Welch a stern warning. Furthermore, McCarthy made it clear that if the behavior persisted, he wouldn’t hesitate to eject Welch from the arena in accordance with official refereeing guidelines.
“I’m being honest, I would have talked to you in the beginning,” McCarthy said. “I would have said, ‘Hey, look, I need you to understand I cannot have you talking to the opponent in any fashion. So when you say ‘Merab, you’ve got to look out,’ even if it’s a call sign for you guys, you’re making it sound like you’re talking to the opponent. So right away, I would have said, ‘Hey, I’m telling you now, stop. We talked about this. If you do it again, I’m going to remove you from this arena,’ which I don’t want to do.”
“Obviously, that would affect your fighter and everything, so it’s the last thing you want to do. But yeah, it’s right in the rules that you can talk to Sean all you want, and we want you to be able to coach and talk to him and give him good, you know, feedback, but we cannot have you in any fashion talking to the opponent or talking to the referee during the round.”
Welch also faced significant backlash when footage surfaced from UFC 292 in August 2023, where he allegedly attempted to mislead Aljamain Sterling, trying to lure him into a reckless charge toward O’Malley.
The sport of MMA moves so fast that even after a major event like UFC 306, there is very little time before everyone has moved on to the next major talking point.
Merab Dvalishvili winning the UFC bantamweight title in the main event of the promotion’s second annual Noche UFC already feels like it happened months ago.
His performance against Sean O’Malley inside the Sphere answered some very intriguing questions that fans had going into the fight.
Not only was Dvalishvili able to dominate the fight with his grappling when he did close the distance, he was able to avoid taking significant damage for the majority of the duration.
Jon Anik Says Fighters Like Merab Dvalishvili & Belal Muhammad Don’t Get Enough Credit
In a recent interview with James Lynch for Middle Easy, UFC commentator Jon Anik gave his thoughts on Dvalishvili’s performance.
He looked to really emphasize how it wasn’t just the grappling of the challenger at UFC 306 that was impressive, it was his overall game.
Dvalishvili was constantly moving and giving O’Malley something new to think about and thanks to his unrelenting gas tank, that continued across all five rounds.
Anik also made reference to Belal Muhammad’s title win at UFC 304 where of course, the biggest takeaway was his grappling success, but that didn’t tell the whole story of the fight where his striking was also very effective.
“A lot of people might have fancied Umar (Nurmagomedov) against either guy and maybe now they’re not so sure just given how dominant Merab was and guys like Merab Dvalishvili and Belal Muhammad are never going to get credit for what they do as strikers. If they have a nice jab or a nice point of entry but man, the total package of Merab, like the dude needs to be tested for science right? And yeah, I’m saying that for comedic value but what is inside of there?”
UFC Women’s Flyweight Champion Valentina Shevchenko was shocked to be on the wrong side of so many predictions from fellow fighters prior to her victory inside the Sphere earlier this month.
The way the bout played out was a stark contrast to what most had expected, with some branding it among the toughest championship fights to predict so far this year in the lead-up.
That view left plenty edging to the side of the defending champion ahead of UFC 306, which evidently left Shevchenko baffled…
Shevchenko Shocked To See UFC Peers Picking Against Her
During a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Shevchenko took a moment to address the number of people — specifically other professional fighters — who had leant the way of Grasso in their pre-fight picks.
While the newly crowned champ would have expected such takes from the fanbase, she expressed surprise at how many of her UFC peers dismissed her chances of unseating the Mexican on fight night.
“Surprisingly for me, many UFC fighters, many pro fighters, when they had their picks before our third fight, they said, ‘Grasso…oh Grasso.’ It was kind of one-sided,” Shevchenko said. “It was a little bit surprising for me. I would take it from people who don’t know much about martial arts, and they just want to see (stupidity) in the striking, like (finding out) who has a stronger chin, a stronger head, and it doesn’t involve too much technique, too much fighter IQ, too much of the character of the fighter.
“I would take it from those people, but when pro fighters say that, it was like, ‘Oh my God. There’s something wrong with this world,’” Shevchenko continued. “That’s another reason I had to show domination. I had to show I’m superior in every field.”
After what happened at last year’s Noche UFC card, Valentina Shevchenko made it perfectly clear that she wanted a trilogy fight with Alexa Grasso on neutral ground.
The current UFC flyweight champion failed to reclaim her title in the second fight with Grasso after the bout was controversially scored as a draw.
Shevchenko had no problem stating that the result was an outcome of their fight taking place on a card that was set to celebrate Mexican Independence Day.
Though she won the belt back at UFC 306 with a dominant performance on the same exact weekend one calendar year later, the “Bullet” says that she was forced to change up her approach as a result of the location of the fight.
Valentina Shevchenko Says That She Adapted Her Game Plan To Counter Biased Judging At UFC 306
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Shevchenko was asked whether the fight taking place at Noche UFC once again made her nervous about the way that the judges would score the fight.
The champ went on to reveal that the setting of UFC 306 at the Sphere made her adjust her game plan in order to try and counter any potentially biased scoring.
“I knew exactly what had happened last time and now even being the bigger event, it’s like all about the culture, all about celebrating the Mexican culture and having the Mexican champion on the card, of course definitely everyone want to celebrate. Definitely I know exactly what is like how much pressure on my shoulders and I just say they don’t leave me any other choice.”
Shevchenko received some criticism for putting on a boring display in the co-main event where the majority of the fight saw her controlling Grasso with her wrestling.
She revealed that this was somewhat intentional because if the judges were going to value Grasso’s success higher than hers, her best route to victory was to shut her opponent down entirely.
“I knew going into this fight that I cannot let this happen again. I didn’t have another choice. Don’t let her have this successful combination, not even one. That’s why it was like pure, I was faster in the striking so she could not respond on my striking and definitely I wanted to show them my skills in the ground game.
“It was like no choice for me, they didn’t leave me another one. Just only completely destroy the game plan of Alexa and show that she cannot do anything. Not in the striking, not in the wrestling, not in the grappling.”
According to former referee John McCarthy, Herb Dean would have been well within his rights to penalize UFC Bantamweight Champion Merab Dvalishvili for his actions against Sean O’Malley.
Dvalishvili secured his long-awaited crowning moment on mixed martial arts’ biggest stage at this month’s UFC 306 (Noche UFC) pay-per-view. The Georgian topped the lineup, staged inside the unique surroundings of the Sphere, in competition for O’Malley’s title.
While “Suga” was able to find the fight-ending blow against Dvalishvili’s friend and teammate Aljamain Sterling last year to capture the gold, that wasn’t the case on September 14.
The moment almost ended in disaster for Dvalishvili, who took the referee’s calls to stop as the end of the round and turned his back on O’Malley with seconds remaining, leading to him eating a strike.
But according to McCarthy, Dvalishvili would have faced further consequences had he been officiating the UFC 306 main event…
McCarthy Recalls Docking Fighter 2 Points For Kissing Opponent In Light Of UFC 306 Moment
During a recent episode of his Weighing In podcast alongside former Strikeforce and UFC fighter Josh Thomson, McCarthy looked back on how Dean officiated the September 14 main event in Las Vegas.
On the topic of Dvalishvili’s back kisses toward the end of round two, McCarthy recalled how he dealt with a similar situation during his days as an active referee.
“I’ve been in this position where I had a fighter kiss another fighter. You look and you go…’What the f*ck did you just do?’ It takes you a second to realize, ‘You just f*cking kissed him!’ Then it’s a matter of how you are going to deal with it,” McCarthy said. “I took two points from him. You want to do something that is absolutely not part of our sport, nobody asked you to do it, nobody wants you to do it, and you want to be cute? Congratulations, you better go finish the fight now. I can disqualify you if I want.
“When that happened, Herb was caught off guard, let’s just be honest,” McCarthy continued. “He should have either made a decisive, ‘Stop! Time, you get over there, you get over there,’ and do something about what just occurred. If he wants to give him a hard warning over it, that’s fine. If he wants to take points, take points for unsportsmanlike conduct, that’s fine. But he got caught in the middle of it.”
O’Malley and his coach, Tim Welch, have since given their own verdict on the moment, suggesting that had the referee kept completely out of the way, “Suga” could have launched a potentially fight-ending head kick from behind.
Alas, that wasn’t to be, and Dvalishvili instead ground out a convincing victory on the scorecards. But with some referees evidently favoring stern punishment for his actions inside the Sphere, perhaps he’ll be a little less keen to place his lips on his next opponent.
Play-by-play commentator Jon Anik thinks one recent revelation may have boosted the UFC’s spirits following the unseating of Sean O’Malley from the bantamweight throne.
The Georgian challenger closed out the Mexican Independence Day celebration by utilizing his renowned cardio and grappling prowess en route to a convincing unanimous decision triumph over “Suga.”
Anik appeared to acknowledge that Dvalishvili’s win was perhaps not the outcome favored by the promotion at the time. But with the revelation regarding “Suga’s” injury — a torn labrum that requires surgery — the commentator suggested that the title changing hands could be a blessing in disguise for the UFC.
“I think the good news if you’re looking for a silver lining for the UFC is that had Sean won this fight, maybe this hip injury would have had to be repaired anyway, right?” Anik said. “And then you wonder if you need an interim champion. So I think right now, your new champion is pretty durable and willing to take on all challengers.
“And a murderers’ row, of course, awaits Sean O’Malley with the Cory Sandhagens of all the world and everybody else,” Anik continued. “There are a lot of dream-type matchups at ’35 for fight fans, right? Even Sean O’Malley and Dominick Cruz makes some semblance of sense right now. So there’s a lot of different fights at ’35 that make a lot of sense.”
It remains to be seen when O’Malley will have his chance to bounce back inside the cage, with the former champ himself giving timelines ranging from eight months to a full one-year layoff.
But throughout his stint on the sidelines, it would appear that fans are set to see plenty more social media posts claiming victory over Dvalishvili — and alongside that, plenty of X community notes…
Bantamweight prospect Raul Rosas Jr. got proceedings off to a strong start for the Mexican fighters at UFC 306.
The 19-year-old earned his fourth win inside the Octagon, third in a row, by defeating Aoriqileng via unanimous decision.
It was a fight where Rosas needed to dig deep in the third round to come away with the victory after his opponent took the second on all three scorecards.
His grappling sealed the win and in his post-fight interview, the rising contender made a bold claim when speaking to Joe Rogan.
Rosas called for a performance bonus only for several highlight reel finishes and a legitimate Fight of the Year contender to follow later on in the night.
Raul Rosas Jr. Says He Could Have Earned A Bonus For Filling The Sphere In The Opening Fight Of The Night
In a recent interview with MMA Fighting, Rosas explained why he chose to call for a performance bonus during his post-fight interview.
He stated that part of his call for an extra 50k was instinct having finished his three other wins inside the Octagon in style.
Though he agrees that he didn’t deserve the bonus after how the rest of the night played out, Rosas does make one case for why he could have gotten it.
In most other cards that take place in front of a full-size audience, the venue usually has a fair few empty seats until later on in the evening.
This wasn’t the case at UFC 306 this past weekend where the fans made sure that they were in their seats ready for the opening contest in the early prelims.
Rosas believes that he was a big part of that, having been given the role of curtain jerker.
“It was just heat of the moment you know like since I’m used to getting finishes and asking for it after, it was just like, it just came out. But either way, the way that my argument to say that I would deserve it, like don’t get me wrong, it was a unanimous decision so obviously I’m okay with not getting it because I should have got a finish but if I would have got it, my argument be that the people showed up because of me, you know.
“The event was packed because of me. Like I’m saying because they were there since early because I was on the prelims. I’m not trying to be cocky but a lot of people tune in to watch me fight so with them putting me on the first fight on the prelims, I made a lot of people show up and tune in on their TVs right away so that would be my argument for the 50Gs but honestly, I agree I didn’t do enough.”
His performance massively impressed the #4-ranked contender Cory Sandhagen who, since the fight, has called next to face O’Malley.
Cory Sandhagen Gives His Post-Fight Analysis Of UFC 306 Main Event
In a recent interview with James Lynch for Fanatics View, Sandhagen gave his thoughts on this past weekend’s bantamweight title fight.
He started by saying that his prediction for the fight had switched as the fight approached, after further consideration.
“I thought O’Malley was going to catch him until I started getting a little bit closer to the fight and I started talking to other people and getting their opinions and what they thought and blah, blah, blah. I was honestly, and not to change my mind because I’m really bad at calling fights, but I did change my mind in this one and go Merab toward the end of it.
“Once I started to reflect on how badass it is to go on a 10 or 11 fight win streak and then also never be finished or anything like that, even though he does get clipped in some of his fights, the shots that he got clipped in weren’t necessarily, like they were lead hooks, they weren’t really things that O’Malley even throws, but I thought Merab did awesome.”
One of the aspects of the fight that Sandhagen was most impressed by was Dvalishvili’s ability to close the distance and shoot for takedowns without putting himself in harm’s way.
This was always going to be where O’Malley was at his most dangerous but it didn’t end up playing into the outcome.
“I thought he fought the fight that you should fight if you have Merab’s skill set against O’Malley. I think he moved when he needed to move. The thing that I was most worried about is Merab’s just a very excitable guy and I was worried that he was gonna not be patient and he was going to bounce around and then make a mistake by going in and he was completely patient. He was cool in there, expect for the whole Tim Welch and his thing in the beginning of the fight but man, he just did such an amazing job and that’s a really, really good win because O’Malley is a really serious fighter.”
Finally, “The Sandman” said that he enjoyed watching this high-stakes clash at the Sphere despite some of the criticisms that it received from fans.
“I know that a lot of fans were bored with that one or whatever but I really do like watching chess matches and I think that that was Merab just out-chessing O’Malley and that was exciting for me to watch.”
Having unseated Aljamain Sterling from the throne last year and dominated Marlon Vera in his first defense this past March, “Suga” was unable to repeat the feat against “The Machine,” who put in a dominant performance across five rounds to take the decision.
While predictions of a Dvalishvili win were common in the lead-up, many appeared to expect a more competitive display from O’Malley. And one of his UFC peers thinks he let opportunities to change the tide in the fight slip by.
Page Visibly Frustrated At O’Malley’s Striking Approach At UFC 306
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Page reacted to the two championship headliners that went down inside the Sphere in Las Vegas on Saturday night.
The former Bellator title challenger and current UFC welterweight contender broke down the action, paying particularly close attention to how O’Malley approached things in his favored realm on the feet.
“MVP” shared plenty of advice that might have been useful to the defending champ throughout the bout’s duration, but he appeared especially puzzled by what he witnessed after O’Malley hurt Dvalishvili to the body late on in the final round.
“He should be tagging his leg even now. Tag his leg, land a jab, tag his body, land a jab,” Page said while watching O’Malley’s work in round five. “You can’t just do one (attack), you’ve got to go again! I think he’s just too tired. … Teep him, kick him. Now hands as well, you need to mix it all up.
“Look, how do you throw one shot and then let him move?! It don’t make sense,” Page continued, just before O’Malley hurt Dvalishvili to the body. “Oh! No! Why would you do that (spinning kick)! … Yes, go again, go again. Look, (Dvalishvili’s) desperate now. This is where he was gonna catch him but I think he’s left it too late. … What are you doing, man?! Bro, you’ve got to have a bit more killer instinct, man.”
While those close to O’Malley suggested he looked off, “Suga” has dismissed any and all excuses and simply admitted he was beaten on the night.
He’ll now focus on his recovery as he looks toward surgery on a torn labrum in the coming weeks. Beyond that, the now-former champ seems to be targeting a comeback in the second half of 2025.
Over promised under delivered. Sorry. Love you guys.
Count former UFC bantamweight champion TJ Dillashaw among those confused by Herb Dean’s actions in this past weekend’s main event.
The veteran official was tasked with being the third man inside the Octagon for the Noche UFC (UFC 306) headliner inside the Sphere, where Sean O’Malley put his 135-pound gold on the line against Merab Dvalishvili.
Later in the fight, the referee featured in a different way as he frequently called for more action while Dvalishvili held a dominant grappling position.
While that was enough to cause debate, Dean’s decision to do the same while the pair were on the feet in the main event’s dying seconds saw him become the subject of heavy criticism from the commentary team and fans online.
Dillashaw Slams Dean For UFC 306 Main Event Refereeing: ‘Shouldn’t Be Involved Like That’
During a recent episode of the JAXXON PODCAST, Dillashaw looked back on the events that unfolded inside the Sphere alongside Quinton “Rampage” Jackson, Luke Rockhold, and Jason Parillo.
The former UFC bantamweight champion was firm with his criticism of the third man inside the cage for Saturday’s headliner, suggesting Dean refereed favorably toward the defending champion.
“It’s complete bullsh*t,” Dillashaw said. “You can’t tell two fighters to work when they’re on their feet. I could run circles if I wanted to. You can’t tell me to go and work. … It’s not like I’m stalling against the cage. We’re striking, and you’re telling me to work. Like, I might run into something now ’cause you’re coaching me on how I am supposed to fight. The ref shouldn’t be involved like that.
“I thought it was very weird. It was almost like he had money on O’Malley,” Dillashaw continued. “(It was) like he wanted Merab to keep going so O’Malley could catch him with something. It was weird.”
Dean’s performance in the main event has remained a prominent talking point days on from the show, as has factors away from the fighting action itself such as Welch’s controversial corner tactics.
While many have lauded the UFC for the spectacle it put on inside the Sphere, those likely weren’t the topics that the promotion hoped would come out of the pay-per-view main event.
Sean O’Malley’s coach, Tim Welch, recently found himself in the crosshairs of fans’ ire after “Suga” came up short in his title defense against Merab Dvalishvili at Noche UFC 306.
Right from the outset, “Suga” found himself off balance, unable to establish any success as Dvalishvili smothered him with a torrent of takedowns at every turn. In the end, O’Malley succumbed to a unanimous decision defeat.
Although fight week remained relatively free of drama, controversy erupted almost immediately once the bout began. Dvalishvili accused O’Malley’s coach of resorting to familiar tactics, claiming he repeated the same strategy used to deceive Aljamain Sterling at UFC 292 in August 2023, attempting to bait him into a reckless charge.
“The Machine” swiftly brought the fight to a halt, furiously directing his attention toward O’Malley’s corner. His outburst forced referee Herb Dean to step in and deliver an admonition. Welch seemingly confessed on X to throwing out some questionable corner advice aimed at distracting Dvalishvili during the fight.
i said be patient merab, but congrats he fought a great fight
Fans Take Shots At Welch After O’Malley’s Defeat to Dvalishvili
Welch recently dropped a YouTube video where he broke down O’Malley’s title loss to Dvalishvili at Noche UFC 306. Once again, the MMA coach admitted to employing divisive corner tactics against the newly crowned bantamweight champion.
However, the fans flocked to the comments section, blasting Welch for resorting to underhanded strategies and holding him responsible for “Suga’s” defeat with a barrage of criticism.
One fan sarcastically clapped back at “Red Hawk”, using his own words from the fight, after the fourth round in the corner, to mock him.
“‘It’s okay, buddy, we’re almost done’.”
Another fan playfully suggested that Welch should pack O’Malley off to Dagestan for a crash course in wrestling.
“Tim send him to Dagestan and forget about him for 2 – 3 years.”
One fan remarked that Team O’Malley seemed to have no meaningful strategy to counter Dvalishvili.
“Looked like you guys had f**k all of a game plan.”
One user jokingly teased Welch, claiming that “The Machine” playfully kissing O’Malley’s back during their grappling exchange in the second round was the real moment that shattered O’Malley’s mental game.
“Those kisses were some significant strikes to the mental”
One fan criticized Welch, lamenting his choice to offer dubious guidance to Dvalishvili.
“Tries to cheat by yelling instructions to Merab, gets caught. ‘It’ll be over soon, Sean’.”
“Tim got called out red-handed trying to coach Merab like he did Aljo.”
Another user pointed fingers at “Red Hawk,” holding him responsible for O’Malley’s defeat, claiming he failed to adequately prepare his fighter for the challenge ahead.
“Now we know why Sean lost; his coach is more into his YouTube channel than training his champion MMA fighter”
“It’s called being classless and trying to cheat because ur guy can’t beat him without the bullsh*t.”
“Sean ain’t ever seeing that belt again”
“Merab put on an absolute clinic, made Sean look like he had never laced up a glove in his life.”
“Sean got his a** beat; all that trash-talking didn’t help.”
Tim Welch, coach of recently dethroned UFC star Sean O’Malley, has hit back at claims his calls to opposition fighters from the corner is “unsportsmanlike.”
“Suga” was comfortably outpointed across five rounds by Merab Dvalishvili, who recorded an 11th straight triumph inside the Octagon to secure his long-awaited championship crowning on MMA’s biggest stage.
The headlining fight was an odd affair, and that was the case almost immediately. In the opening seconds, referee Herb Dean had to interfere as Dvalishvili began lambasting O’Malley’s corner.
The Georgian wasn’t about to let those antics go unanswered, and many in the community have since backed him up and criticized the actions of O’Malley’s trainer.
Coach Welch On Controversial Corner Strategy: ‘If There’s Any Way To Do A Little Bit Of Mind Games…’
During a video recently uploaded to his YouTube channel, Welch reflected on his man’s championship loss inside the Sphere and touched on the controversy surrounding his input in the fight.
Welch said he was surprised at Dvalishvili’s emotional outburst following one remark early on, which he went on to defend by insisting that he’ll always look for an edge that could aid his fighter inside the cage.
“He must have been anticipating that a little bit. But I really wasn’t going out of my way to yell,” Welch said. “I was surprised how much he freaked out. He let his emotions freakin’ get to him in there. But, it didn’t do anything, it didn’t matter one bit.
“It’s not like I’m being unsportsmanlike. I mean, it’s a little mind games. People sometimes forget that this is a fight. He’s fighting my buddy, a really close buddy who I’ve spent a lot of years growing up with. He’s fighting him, trying to beat him up,” Welch continued. “If there’s any way to do a little bit of mind games when it comes to war, I’m gonna do it. If I was your coach and I thought it might help you win, maybe just a little bit, then I’d probably do it also.”
In addition to the two high-stakes championship headliners, all eyes were on the $20 million production the UFC put on using the Sphere’s technology.
When it comes to the latter, the overall reception across the MMA community appeared to be largely positive. But in terms of the main and co-main event fights themselves, the consensus trended in a different direction.
And for one former UFC fighter, the action inside the Octagon remained the night’s priority, rendering the Sphere experiment a failure…
Schaub Not A Fan Of UFC’s Sphere Spectacle
During the latest episode of his podcast, Schaub gave his assessment of the UFC’s Sphere PPV and the fights that went down at the organization’s second annual celebration of Mexican Independence Day.
With his preference being excitement inside the Octagon over the additional production that came with the venue, Schaub was left disappointed by the event as a whole.
“My issue is the product that I paid to watch was not great. It wasn’t a pay-per-view-worthy card,” Schaub said. “The bell of the ball is the Sphere. Therefore, what you’re paying for, unless you’re in-person, ain’t that great, dude. And the main event and co-main event, boy did the UFC gamble and they lost.
“You know what the Sphere is? It’s Rainforest Cafe. It looks f*cking great but the product is sh*t,” Schaub continued. “UFC doing events at the Sphere is Rainforest Cafe. Looks great, fun experience, the actual product sucks. I’d rather watch great fights at the Apex center. I don’t need all that. Maybe I’m the minority.”
UFC CEO Dana White has remained firm in calling the Sept. 14 event a one-and-done show, something Schaub and those sharing the same sentiment will no doubt be pleased to hear.
But with plenty calling for a repeat experience down the line, perhaps the promotional higher-ups will be tempted to reverse their stance and put on another night of action at the venue, hopefully with headliners that deliver fireworks second time around.
A former opponent of his disagrees with the idea that the main event played out how it did due to one man not firing, rather than Merab Dvalishvili being incredibly effective.
Aljamain Sterling Disputes The Idea That Sean O’Malley Looked Off At UFC 306
In his recap of UFC 306, Aljamain Sterling disagreed that O’Malley wasn’t firing on all cylinders at the Sphere this past weekend.
The former bantamweight champion, who was in Dvalishvili’s corner, pointed to how “Suga” started the fight looking great, saying that this only changed once the challenger started to have success.
Not to mention the third round, which he won on two scorecards, and the final round where he hurt his opponent with a body kick and tried to find the finish in the closing moments.
When reflecting on the fight, he said that the defending champion came out exactly how they expected him to which meant they were able to execute their game plan.
“I give credit where due, he was well prepared to say he looked flat makes no sense. The opening bell when he’s coming out with those faints, those hip twitches that he does so well where he’s shaking off to the side, shaking off to the other side and then looking for those long strikes. He came out exactly like Conor McGregor did against Khabib. Now I gave Merab that same exact look, coming out with the fingers, long, trying to hit the feints and trying to go to the body, trying to go up top.”
Given the difficulty many had predicting a winner in the lead-up, Grasso’s uncompetitive display came as a surprise. And reacting to the result herself, the Mexican has pledged better next time out.
“I want to thank you for all your support 🤍 It wasn’t the night I wanted,” Grasso wrote in Spanish. “I’ll get back to training and I promise the next fight will be much better.”
While Grasso looks to rebound in her return down the line, Shevchenko will have her sights on cementing her second divisional rule and establishing the kind of dominance she was able to find first time around.
It would appear likely that the first step in that pursuit comes against Manon Fiorot in early 2025. The Frenchwoman has established herself as a top contender by winning all seven of her UFC fights to date, including over Rose Namajunas and Erin Blanchfield. She was also in Las Vegas last week to weigh in as the backup fighter for the UFC 306 co-main event.
And in the aftermath of UFC 306 (Noche UFC), MMA News has you covered with this week’s updates to the official UFC rankings.
Men’s Pound-For-Pound: Merab Dvalishvili closed out Saturday’s event with his long-awaited championship crowning. As a result, the bantamweight kingpin has debuted on the P4P list at #7, one position above interim heavyweight titleholder Tom Aspinall. Further up, welterweight champ Belal Muhammad (#5) has jumped his middleweight counterpart Dricus Du Plessis (#6).
The defeated O’Malley, meanwhile, has slid seven positions to #13. Dvalishvili’s friend and teammate Aljamain Sterling is out of the top 15 entirely following the Georgian’s arrival.
An impressive performance on the biggest stage of them all 😮💨@MerabDvalishvil is the NEW bantamweight champion of the world 👏
Women’s Pound-for-Pound: Valentina Shevchenko is once again the flyweight queen, and she’s also back on the P4P mountaintop. “Bullet” has climbed two places back to top spot, while previous #1 Alexa Grasso has fallen to #3 following her lopsided loss to Shevchenko in their trilogy.
Women’s Strawweight: No changes.
Women’s Flyweight: The sole change at 125 pounds has seen Grasso slip back to top contender status, swapping positions with now-champ Shevchenko.
Women’s Bantamweight: Norma Dumont secured the biggest win of her career in the Noche UFC featured prelim, outpointing a badly damaged Irene Aldana. The result has seen the Brazilian ascend by three positions to #5 at 135 pounds. The defeated Mexican, on the other hand, is down just one spot to #6.
Flyweight: In the male 125-pound weight class, Asu Almabayev has moved up one place to share #14 with the recently retired Matt Schnell.
Bantamweight: Like in the women’s flyweight division, the only change in the men’s 135-pound division came with the switch on the throne. With Dvalishvili now occupying it, O’Malley is the #1-ranked bantamweight.
Featherweight: The biggest climber this week is the charging Diego Lopes, who got the better of former two-time title challenger and longtime top-five contender Brian Ortega on Saturday night. The Mexico-residing Brazilian has risen by a mammoth 10 positions to #3. “T-City,” meanwhile, has been relegated to #5.
He continues to show why he's a fan favorite 👊
After his 5th straight win who do you want @DiegoLopesMMA in the Octagon with next? #UFC306
Following his bantamweight title win in the main event of UFC 306, the promotion was clearly looking to set Merab Dvalishvili up for his first title defense.
Joe Rogan asked the new champion what he thought about the match-up with Umar Nurmagomedov, which is likely next for him.
Despite the broadcast capturing Nurmagomedov’s reaction live from the Sphere, Dvalishvili didn’t answer the question that had been posed to him.
Kamaru Usman Advises Merab Dvalishvili To Face Umar Nurmagomedov Challenge Head-On
In an interview with Dvalishvili on the Pound 4 Pound podcast, Kamaru Usman had offered some words of advice to the title challenger before UFC 306 got underway.
During his post-event recap alongside Henry Cejudo, Usman once again stressed why he thinks that Dvalishvili should be pushing for this fight.
Having already made the case that it’s the biggest fight out there for him right now, Usman also believes that this kind of challenge could elevate the new champion.
Every great fighter needs great rivals to push themselves further than before and “The Nigerian Nightmare” believes that Nurmagomedov offers that.
He referenced his own welterweight title reign and how his two tough fights against Colby Covington were highly significant moments in his career that helped take him to another level in terms of popularity and influence within the organisation.
“Merab is not afraid but I know he’s worried about a guy like Umar and sometimes those are the guys that really put you on that next level. Merab might come out there and look like freaking the best we’ve ever seen. So you, and I needed that dance partner. Colby Covington gave me that and so that’s what Merab, at this point, I think if I had any advice for Merab, it’s too embrace that. It’s too embrace that. You’re right, when they did ask him that question, he kinda danced around it.”
The former champion was able to reclaim the title after a controversial rematch that ended in a draw, following their first encounter where she was shockingly submitted.
The takedowns from Shevchenko totally shut down Grasso’s boxing skills and aside from a few submission attempts, she wasn’t able to stop the challenger’s takedowns which led to her being stuck on the floor for the majority of the duration.
Robert Whittaker Questions How The Match-Up Was Ever Close After Watching UFC 306
On a recent episode of his MMArcade Podcast, former middleweight champion Robert Whittaker gave his analysis of the co-main event.
He pointed to the fact that there was a huge gap between them this time around compared to their prior encounter at last year’s Noche UFC.
Even though Grasso was able to secure one of the biggest upsets in UFC history when she submitted Shevchenko at UFC 285, she was down on the scorecards at the time.
Having seen how easy the “Bullet” made the fight look at points inside the Sphere, Whittaker questioned how this match-up was ever competitive.
“They’ve fought three times now. I don’t know how Grasso won the first, well I do, she was losing until she submitted Shevchenko right? And then I don’t know how the second one was a draw because this third fight like Grasso did nothing. I don’t want to come down hard on her okay because maybe she was just shut down that heavy but it was a draw last fight.
“I don’t know, it didn’t look like Grasso wanted to be in that fight. It looked like a significant level difference this time around.”
O’Malley did have some success with his striking, especially in the final moments of the fight but he wasn’t able to catch Dvalishvili in the same way that he was able to his teammate, Aljamain Sterling.
The “Funkmaster” has openly admitted that he made some crucial mistakes in that fight back at UFC 292 that as we saw this past weekend, could have been very different if Sterling had more effectively closed the gap on his opponent.
Henry Cejudo Reviews Sean O’Malley’s Performance At UFC 306
On a recent episode of the Pound 4 Pound podcast, former bantamweight champion Henry Cejudo weighed in with his thoughts on the fight.
Having faced both Sterling and Dvalishvili in the past, Cejudo felt that the challenger would be too much for O’Malley over five rounds.
He also believes that O’Malley’s title back at UFC 292 was a “fluke” after he was able to stop Sterling without really having his grappling game put to the test.
Cejudo made reference to how he was able to put up a better fight against Dvalishvili at UFC 298, where he lost via unanimous decision.
“What can I say? I predicted these things. Sean is not accustomed to going five rounds and he is no accustomed to people on his legs and I just felt like, I still go back and say hey, that fight with Aljamain Sterling, that was a fluke too. Aljamain was still in that fight and people thought I was just hating. It’s like no, I’ve been in there with Merab, I did a whole lot better than Sean did when I fought Merab. I mean I took down Merab, like Merab is lucky that I had that groin injury.”
Merab Dvalishvili captured the UFC bantamweight championship at Noche UFC 306, and while it was a dominant performance, it also came with one of the most bizarre openings to a fight in recent memory.
In the opening seconds, Dvalishvili could be seen mouthing off, but it wasn’t to opponent O’Malley. Rather, the Georgian challenger appeared to be in an argument with the champion’s corner, particularly his coach Tim Welch.
Referee Herb Dean brought a swift halt to the bout to warn Dvalishvili for talking to O’Malley’s corner. Dean also gave a warning to Welch for what commentators referred to as “excessive coaching.” Dean would warn O’Malley’s corner later on in the fight.
The bizarre nature of the pause left many fans confused and looking for clarification. This came especially when the UFC commentary team mentioned that O’Malley’s corner may have initiated the conversation with the title challenger.
On social media the following day, Welch provided clarification on what he was saying.
i said be patient merab, but congrats he fought a great fight
Tim Welch Reveals What He Told Merab Dvalishvili, Tips His Cap To The New Bantamweight Champion
This is not the first time O’Malley’s corner has been at the center of controversy for talking with a fighter.
As shown by the UFC documentary on Roku earlier this year, O’Malley’s corner appeared to communicate with Aljamain Sterling when O’Malley challenged him for the bantamweight title in the main event of UFC 292. “Sugar” to connect with Sterling not long after and finished the fight from there.
On this occasion, O’Malley struggled with the grappling expertise of Dvalishvili, Sterling’s friend and teammate, as he was taken down several times and nearly submitted in a unanimous decision.
O’Malley had successfully defended the title just once, defeating longtime rival Marlon “Chito” Vera at UFC 299.
Dvalishvili, meanwhile, has now won 11 straight fights inside the Octagon.
It would not be far off to say that the performance of Sean O’Malley at Noche UFC (UFC 306) was perhaps the worst he’s ever had in the Octagon — and it ultimately cost him the UFC bantamweight championship.
O’Malley appeared to struggle with the pressure and takedowns brought on by Merab Dvalishvili as the two faced off in the main event at the Sphere. Though “Suga” gave the Georgian some trouble in the fight’s final round, Dvalishvili ended up scoring a unanimous decision to win the title.
Not long after the loss, O’Malley made a brief statement on social media, noting the disappointment left in his performance and the result.
“Over promised under delivered. Sorry. Love you guys,” O’Malley wrote.
Over promised under delivered. Sorry. Love you guys.
Sean O’Malley Admits Bad Night, Dana White Says He Looked ‘Flat’
Though there were bizarre circumstances at the start of the fight, the opening rounds saw Dvalishvili make a statement with several takedowns and a couple of guillotine attempts that troubled O’Malley. The defending champ landed the fight’s strongest strikes toward the end of the third round, but that was after another four minutes of grappling masterclass from the Georgian.
Several front kicks to the midsection left Dvalishvili hurt and in danger in the fifth round, but O’Malley did not turn up the intensity, and it was too little, too late.
Even UFC CEO Dana White noted the poor performance from O’Malley, saying he looked “flat.”
“He didn’t look sharp. He didn’t look crisp,” White said at the UFC 306 post-fight press conference.
Dvalishvili has now won 11 straight fights after dropping his first two Octagon outings. He also gained an ounce of revenge for his teammate and good friend Aljamain Sterling, who O’Malley knocked out at UFC 292 to capture the bantamweight gold.
O’Malley retained the title once, defeating Marlon “Chito” Vera at UFC 299 in March.
