UFC 306 delivered in nearly every possible way and featured some very impressive and entertaining fights as well as some dominant performances. Taking place in the one-of-a-kind The Sphere venue, it was a night that fight fans in attendance and even watching on TV are not soon to forget. The five-fight main card did not deliver a single finish but in the co-main and main event title fights, both belts changed hands. There are a couple of former champions, and some high-level contenders that will have to look at next steps after the results on Saturday night.
Sean O’Malley
Challenger Merab Dvalishvili cruised to a dominant, grappling laced, unanimous decision victory in UFC 306’s main event over Sean O’Malley. This was just the second loss of O’Malley’s 20 fight pro MMA career. Sean was riding a seven-fight unbeaten streak since losing to Marlon Vera in mid 2020.
After taking a dominant loss like that it’s clear that O’Malley does not need an immediate rematch with Merab. Instead, he should look to build himself back up by fighting a fresh face high up in the rankings. Merab entered the fight as the #1 ranked UFC bantamweight while obviously O’Malley was the reigning champ.
O’Malley should fight another striker in Cory Sandhagen. Cory is ranked a #4 in the UFC’s bantamweight division and was last in action against Umar Nurmagomedov in August. The unanimous decision loss snapped a three-fight winning streak which spawned from an unsuccessful attempt at the vacant 135lbs title. (Opposite of Petr Yan in 2021.)
O’Malley’s next fight: Cory Sandhagen
Alexa Grasso
Valentina Shevchenko was able to implement her gameplan to the fullest extent in a one-sided unanimous decision victory in order recapture the belt from Alexa Grasso. With the result of the trilogy bout, Grasso and Shevchenko are now 1-1-1 against each other.
Shevchenko entered the bout as the #3 ranked women’s bantamweight while Grasso was not only the champ but ranked as the #1 pound-for-pound women’s fighter in the UFC. Obviously, with the TUF season and fighting each other three times, it’s time for a fresh matchup for Grasso as she has not thought about anyone but Shevchenko in nearly two years.
A good next fight for Alexa and keeping with the theme of rematches, would be a fight against Maycee Barber. Maycee is currently the #4 ranked women’s flyweight and is on a six-fight win streak since losing to Alexa in February of 2021. Barber’s last time out was a unaimous decision victory against Katlyn Cerminara at UFC 299 in March. Most recently, she withdrew from a fight with Rose Namajunas in July.
Grasso’s next fight: Maycee Barber
Brian Ortega
Diego Lopes beat down Brian Ortega over the course of 15 minutes to win a unanimous decision fight on Saturday. A couple of times throughout the bout, Ortega looked like he was seconds away from being finished but was ultimately able to hang in there as he somehow always does.
Ortega entered the fight ranked at #3, while Diego Lopes entered the fight as the #13 ranked UFC featherweight.
Depending on how soon Ortega would like to get back into the octagon, a good matchup could be Giga Chikadze. Giga last fought in July, losing a unanimous decision to Arnold Allen. He’s won just one of his last two fights dating back to January of 2022 and he’s currently the #10 ranked featherweight. A good fight to determine who really deserves to be in the top 10 at 145lbs.
Ortega’s next fight: Giga Chikadze
Daniel Zellhuber
Daniel Zellhuber lost a split decision to Esteban Ribovics in what was an edge of your seat, back-and-forth type of fight, on Saturday. The fight ended up winning fight of the night honors and rightfully so, as both fighters put up nonstop offense and were able to survive getting hurt or stunned multiple times.
Zellhuber is now 3-2 with the UFC, losing on Saturday for the first time since his UFC debut in 2022 opposite of Trey Ogden. With just five appearances in the UFC, and three performance bonuses, it’s clear that Daniel is on the right track.
Chase Hooper would be a good next fight for Zellhuber. Hooper is on a three-fight win streak since moving up to the lightweight division in May of 2023. Two of the fights ended with submissions including his last time out, when he submitted Viacheslav Borshchev with a d’arce in the second round, back in May. Great striker vs grappler matchup of Contender Series alums.
Zellhuber’s next fight: Chase Hooper
Ode Osbourne
Ode Osbourne lost a tough to stomach, unanimous decision defeat at the hands of Ronaldo Rodriguez to open the UFC 306 main card. Osbourne had his moments especially in the beginning of the fight, but was ultimately out grappled, as his opponent was able to claw his way back.
Osbourne is now in a very tricky spot. Now 4-6 with the UFC, he is now on a 3-fight losing streak and has lost four of his last five. Osbourne’s last win was a split decision victory over Charles Johnson in February of 2023.
Ode’s next fight should be against Jimmy Flick. Jimmy has won just one of four fights since his mini retirement ended spanning from 2020-2023. Flick has a loss agaisnt Charles Johnson in that time who is a common opponent between the two. Jimmy was last in action back in June when he lost a unanimous decision to Nate Maness.
Osbourne’s next fight: Jimmy Flick
