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UFC 306

UFC 306: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili
The poster for UFC 306: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili
PromotionUltimate Fighting Championship
DateSeptember 14, 2024 (2024-09-14)
VenueSphere
CityParadise, Nevada, United States
Attendance16,024[1]
Total gate$21,829,245[1]
Event chronology
UFC Fight Night: Burns vs. Brady UFC 306: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili UFC Fight Night: Moicano vs. Saint Denis

UFC 306: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili (branded as Riyadh Season Noche UFC for sponsorship reasons) was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that took place on September 14, 2024, at the Sphere in Paradise, Nevada, part of the Las Vegas Valley, United States.[2][3][4]

Background

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After hosting over 200 events in Las Vegas, this was the promotion's debut at the Sphere, which opened in September 2023.[3]

Production

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UFC 306 was UFC's second event (after 2023's UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2) to be held under the "Noche UFC" banner—a commemoration of Mexico's independence day in which all but one of the matches on the card (the main event between Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili) featured at least one fighter of Mexican or Mexican American descent. As UFC's usual Las Vegas venue T-Mobile Arena had already been booked by Canelo Álvarez for his independence day fight against Edgar Berlanga, UFC booked Sphere instead as a one-off event, marking the venue's first live sporting event.[5][6]

UFC founder Dana White had previously attended a concert during U2's opening residency at Sphere and was impressed by the venue's technology, stating that UFC 306 planned to "take what U2 did and multiply it by a million."[7] Television director Glenn Weiss and Mexican-American filmmaker Carlos López Estrada were brought on to oversee the production of the event, including the content that would be displayed on Sphere's 16K resolution video display.[7] The main card was divided into six acts which chronicled the history of Mexico from the perspective of combat; each act consisted of a 90-second introductory vignette played before each match, and an accompanying "world" that served as a backdrop on the screen during the match.[8][7]

The use of Sphere resulted in UFC 306 having a higher production cost of around $20 million, in comparison to the approximately $2 million that is spent on other UFC pay-per-view events.[7] UFC would sell a title sponsorship to an event for the first time, in which UFC 306 was marketed as "Riyadh Season Noche UFC" under an agreement with Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority.[9][7] Due to the production costs, UFC's long-term agreement with T-Mobile Arena operator MGM Resorts International, and the circumstances that necessitated it, White stated that it was unlikely that UFC would host another Las Vegas event at Sphere, and referred to UFC 306 as an event that "[would] never be done again". However, he added that "if some new technology pops up, I guarantee you I will be first."[7][9]

Fight card

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A UFC Bantamweight Championship bout between current champion Sean O'Malley and Merab Dvalishvili headlined the event.[10]

A UFC Women's Flyweight Championship trilogy bout between current champion Alexa Grasso and former champion Valentina Shevchenko took place at the co-main event.[11] The pairing first met at UFC 285 in March 2023, where Grasso won the title by fourth round submission upset.[12] Their second meeting took place at UFC Fight Night: Grasso vs. Shevchenko 2 in September 2023, which the bout ended by split draw.[13] The pairing previously coached on The Ultimate Fighter: Team Grasso vs. Team Shevchenko against each other.[14] Manon Fiorot served as backup and potential replacement for this fight.[15]

A featherweight bout between former UFC Featherweight Championship challenger Brian Ortega and Diego Lopes took place at the event.[16] The pair was previously expected to meet at UFC 303, but Ortega withdrew just hours before the bout due to illness.[17]

A middleweight bout between former LFA Middleweight Champion Anthony Hernandez and Michel Pereira was scheduled for this event.[18] However, the bout was moved to UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs. Pereira to serve as the main event.[19]

A flyweight bout between Édgar Cháirez and Kevin Borjas was scheduled for this event.[20] However, Borjas withdrew from the fight for unknown reasons and was replaced by Joshua Van.[21]

Results

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Main card
Weight class Method Round Time Notes
Bantamweight Merab Dvalishvili def. Sean O'Malley (c) Decision (unanimous) (49–46, 48–47, 48–47) 5 5:00 [a]
Women's Flyweight Valentina Shevchenko def. Alexa Grasso (c) Decision (unanimous) (50–45, 50–45, 50–45) 5 5:00 [b]
Featherweight Diego Lopes def. Brian Ortega Decision (unanimous) (30–26, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Esteban Ribovics def. Daniel Zellhuber Decision (split) (29–28, 28–29, 29–28) 3 5:00
Flyweight Ronaldo Rodríguez def. Ode' Osbourne Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–27, 29–27) 3 5:00
Preliminary card (ESPNews / ESPN+)
Women's Bantamweight Norma Dumont def. Irene Aldana Decision (unanimous) (30–27, 30–27, 30–27) 3 5:00
Lightweight Ignacio Bahamondes def. Manuel Torres TKO (punches) 1 4:02
Women's Strawweight Ketlen Souza def. Yazmin Jauregui Technical Submission (rear-naked choke) 1 3:02
Flyweight Joshua Van def. Édgar Cháirez Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) 3 5:00
Early preliminary card (ESPN+ / UFC Fight Pass)
Bantamweight Raul Rosas Jr. def. Aori Qileng Decision (unanimous) (29–28, 29–28, 29–28) 3 5:00
  1. ^ For the UFC Bantamweight Championship.
  2. ^ For the UFC Women's Flyweight Championship.

[22]

Bonus awards

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The following fighters received $50,000 bonuses.[23]

Records set

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The event generated $21,829,245 in ticket receipts, which broke the record for the biggest gate in UFC history surpassing UFC 205 (which previously held the record with a gate of $17,700,000).[24]

UFC 306 also now holds highest-grossing records for the following: sales for VIP experiences, merchandise sales at a UFC event, single event ticket sales at the Sphere venue, and sponsorship sales (based on the partnership with Riyadh Season).[25]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ a b Mike Bohn (2024-09-15). "UFC 306 post-event facts: Merab Dvalishvili's streak reaches historic status in title win vs. Sean O'Malley". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-09-15.
  2. ^ Nolan King (2023-12-20). "UFC officially announces early 2024 schedule: Dates, locations, and venues". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2023-12-21.
  3. ^ a b Nolan King (2024-02-25). "UFC 303, UFC 306 dates and locations announced". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-02-25.
  4. ^ Staff (2024-06-27). "UFC 306 at Sphere in Las Vegas rebranded as 'Riyadh Season Noche UFC'". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-06-27.
  5. ^ "Alvarez to face unbeaten Berlanga on 14 September". BBC Sport. 26 July 2024. Retrieved 26 July 2024.
  6. ^ "White rips MGM for 'disrespect' amid card conflict". ESPN.com. 2024-07-27. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  7. ^ a b c d e f Weprin, Alex (2024-09-04). "Inside the UFC's $20M Bet on the Las Vegas Sphere: "Take What U2 Did and Multiply It by a Million"". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  8. ^ "For Mexico, For All Time". UFC.com. 2024-09-14. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  9. ^ a b Manfre, Dylan (2024-06-27). "UFC, Saudi Arabia Agree to Title Sponsorship of UFC 306 at Sphere". Sportico.com. Retrieved 2025-01-15.
  10. ^ Nolan King (2024-07-26). "Noche UFC at Sphere gets Sean O'Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili title-fight headliner". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  11. ^ Nolan King (2024-07-26). "Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko 3 to co-headline Noche UFC at Sphere". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  12. ^ Simon Samano (2023-03-05). "UFC 285 results: Alexa Grasso makes Valentina Shevchenko tap out, wins flyweight title in huge upset". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2023-06-29.
  13. ^ Jay Anderson (2023-09-17). "Noche UFC: Nail-biter Sees Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko ruled a draw". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2023-09-17.
  14. ^ Jay Pettry (2023-12-07). "Season 32 of 'The Ultimate Fighter' set for June with featherweights, middleweights". sherdog.com. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  15. ^ Simon Samano (2024-08-15). "Manon Fiorot tabbed as Alexa Grasso-Valentina Shevchenko trilogy backup at UFC 306, coach says". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-08-15.
  16. ^ Nolan King (2024-07-26). "Brian Ortega vs. Diego Lopes rebooked for Noche UFC at Sphere". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  17. ^ Nolan King (2024-06-29). "Dan Ige replaces Brian Ortega in shocking 11th-hour UFC 303 co-main event change vs. Diego Lopes". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-06-29.
  18. ^ Danny Segura and Farah Hannoun (2024-07-02). "Michel Pereira vs. Anthony Hernandez booked for Noche UFC at The Sphere". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-07-02.
  19. ^ Guilherme Cruz (2024-07-26). "Michel Pereira vs. Anthony Hernandez moved from UFC 306 to Fight Night main event in October". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  20. ^ Matthew Wells and Danny Segura (2024-07-03). "Kevin Borjas vs. Edgar Chairez added to Noche UFC at Sphere in Las Vegas". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
  21. ^ Nolan King (2024-09-03). "Joshua Van steps into UFC 306 vs. Edgar Chairez after Kevin Borjas withdraws". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-09-03.
  22. ^ "Riyadh Season Noche UFC: O'Malley vs. Dvalishvili". Ultimate Fighting Championship. Retrieved 2024-07-26.
  23. ^ Chris Taylor (2024-09-14). "UFC 306 Bonus Report: Ignacio Bahamondes one of four fighters to take home an extra $50k". bjpenn.com. Retrieved 2024-09-14.
  24. ^ Nolan King (2024-09-17). "10 highest UFC event gates in promotion history". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-09-18.
  25. ^ Damon Martin (2024-09-25). "UFC 306 sets record as highest-grossing event in UFC history for ticket sales, merchandise and more". mmafighting.com. Retrieved 2024-09-25.