UFC 306 LIVE: Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili headline unique ‘Noche’ event at Sphere

Follow live, as Sean O’Malley defends his bantamweight belt against Merab Dvalishvili in Las Vegas

UFC's Robert Whittaker: 'I believe I'm the most dangerous middleweight ever'

In the main event of UFC 306 tonight, Sean O’Malley takes on Merab Dvalishvili in a highly-anticipated bantamweight title fight.

“Sugar Sean” O’Malley is making his second defence of the belt, having won it from Aljamain Sterling with a picture-perfect knockout last August, before retaining it with a masterclass against Marlon Vera in March.

The American star may face a stern test in Las Vegas, however, as he encounters a challenger on a 10-fight win streak. Georgia’s Dvalishvili enters the Sphere on the back of three straight victories against former champions: Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan and Jose Aldo.

And in the co-main event of UFC 306, Alexa Grasso defends her flyweight title against divisional icon Valentina Shevchenko, in a long-awaited trilogy bout. Grasso submitted Shevchenko in a shock result in 2022, before the pair fought to a controversial draw in 2023.

Elsewhere at UFC 306, which has also been branded ‘UFC Noche’ as a celebration of Mexican fighting on the nation’s Independence weekend, Diego Lopes fights Brian Ortega. Follow live updates and results from UFC 306, below.

UFC 306: Noche LIVE

• UFC 306 takes place inside Sphere in Las Vegas – as venue’s first ever sporting event
• Sean O’Malley defends bantamweight title versus Merab Dvalishvili in main event
• Alexa Grasso defends flyweight belt against Valentina Shevchenko in trilogy bout
• Fight card also labelled ‘UFC Noche’ as part of Mexican Independence weekend
• Esteban Ribovics wins split decision over Daniel Zellhuber in wild clash
• Ronaldo Rodriguez outpoints Ode’ Osbourne in thrilling main-card opener

[15 September 2024 00:55 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Where does Sugar Sean rank on our p4p list?

Sean O’Malley occupies a spot in our pound-for-pound top 10, but have we judged him harshly?

See our full list below:

[15 September 2024 00:50 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Event goes up against Canelo vs Berlanga boxing card

UFC 306 isn’t the only fight event in Vegas tonight...

The MMA card is going up against Canelo vs Berlanga, the boxing event which is under way at the T-Mobile Arena.

You can read our preview of that fight here:

[15 September 2024 00:45 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: The real ‘star’ of the show isn’t even a fighter

If the UFC delivers on its president’s promise, tonight will bring the “greatest sporting event of all time”. Those were the words of Dana White, talking up the first sports event to take place at the revolutionary Sphere in Las Vegas: UFC 306, or UFC Noche, or Riyadh Season UFC Noche (306).

See, the sell of tonight’s fight card has been muddled. The pay-per-view event is UFC 306, following the MMA company’s typical numbering pattern. Nominally, it is UFC Noche, a celebration of Mexican fighters on Mexican Independence weekend (even though the main event does not feature a fighter from the nation). And promotionally, it is Riyadh Season UFC Noche, as the second UFC event with Saudi involvement.

Yet it might well have been called UFC Sphere. Many readers will be aware of the game-changing venue, which opened a year ago and sports a domed screen all over its exterior, and another immersive screen inside. It has thus far hosted music groups like U2 and Eagles, has screened films, and has played a background role in the Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix.

But on Saturday (14 September), the Sphere will play no background role. “The Sphere is the star of the show,” an ever-bullish White told ESPN this week. “You’ve never experienced anything like this in your life. While we were watching U2 [...] you listen to the music and watch the images, and every once in a while you look over at U2. I’m like: ‘This would be fascinating to pull off a sporting event.’ This is where sports and entertainment truly come together for the first time ever.”

But is all as it seems? Here are the potential problems with tonight’s show...

[15 September 2024 00:40 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Fight card – subject to late changes

Main card

Sean O’Malley (C) vs Merab Dvalishvili (men’s bantamweight title)

Alexa Grasso (C) vs Valentina Shevchenko 3 (women’s flyweight title)

Brian Ortega vs Diego Lopes (featherweight)

Daniel Zellhuber vs Esteban Ribovics (lightweight)

Ronaldo Rodriguez vs Ode’ Osbourne (flyweight)

Prelims

Irene Aldana vs Norma Dumont (women’s bantamweight)

Manuel Torres vs Ignacio Bahamondes (lightweight)

Yazmin Jauregui vs Ketlen Souza (women’s strawweight)

Edgar Chairez vs Joshua Van (flyweight)

Early prelims

Raul Rosas Jr vs Aoriqileng (bantamweight)

Alexa Grasso (right) submitted Valentina Shevchenko in 2022, before they drew last year (Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.)

[15 September 2024 00:30 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Odds

O’Malley – 5/6; Dvalishvili – 20/21

Grasso – 5/6; Shevchenko – 20/21

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Sean O’Malley (left) during his win over Marlon Vera in March (Getty Images)

[15 September 2024 00:20 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: How to watch fights

The card will air live on TNT Sports in the UK, with the broadcaster’s app and website also streaming the fights. Discovery+ will also air the action in the UK. In the US, ESPN+ will stream the event live, as will the UFC’s Fight Pass.

If you’re travelling abroad and want to watch major sporting events, you might need a VPN to unblock your streaming app. Our VPN round-up is here to help and includes deals on VPNs in the market. Viewers using a VPN need to make sure that they comply with any local regulations where they are, and also with the terms of their service provider.

We may earn commission from this link, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

[15 September 2024 00:10 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Timings tonight

UFC 306 takes place at the Sphere in Las Vegas tonight.

The early prelims are due to begin at 12.30am BST on Sunday (4.30pm PT / 6.30pm CT / 7.30pm ET on Saturday), with the prelims following at 1am BST on Sunday (5pm PT / 7pm CT / 8pm ET on Saturday). The main card is then scheduled for 3am BST on Sunday (7pm PT / 9pm CT / 10pm ET on Saturday).

Our live fight updates will begin at 1am BST, when the regular prelims start, at which point we’ll also give you a recap of the early prelims!

[15 September 2024 00:00 · Alex Pattle]

UFC 306 LIVE: Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili headline ‘Noche’ event

In the main event of UFC 306 tonight, Sean O’Malley takes on Merab Dvalishvili in a highly-anticipated bantamweight title fight.

“Sugar Sean” O’Malley is making his second defence of the belt, having won it from Aljamain Sterling with a picture-perfect knockout last August, before retaining it with a masterclass against Marlon Vera in March.

The American star may face a stern test in Las Vegas, however, as he encounters a challenger on a 10-fight win streak. Georgia’s Dvalishvili enters the Sphere on the back of three straight victories against former champions: Henry Cejudo, Petr Yan and Jose Aldo.

And in the co-main event of UFC 306, Alexa Grasso defends her flyweight title against divisional icon Valentina Shevchenko, in a long-awaited trilogy bout. Grasso submitted Shevchenko in a shock result in 2022, before the pair fought to a controversial draw in 2023.

Elsewhere at UFC 306, which has also been branded ‘UFC Noche’ as a celebration of Mexican fighting on the nation’s Independence weekend, Diego Lopes fights Brian Ortega.