-
Andreas Hale, ESPN
Two title fights will headline UFC 306 at The Sphere in Las Vegas on Sept. 14 as Sean O’Malley will defend the bantamweight title against top contender Merab Dvalishvili and Alexa Grasso will put her women’s flyweight championship on the line in a trilogy fight against Valentina Shevchenko.
UFC president Dana White announced the 10-fight card, which has been rebranded as Noche UFC, on Friday evening for the promotion’s most ambitious event to date.
This event at The Sphere will be a “one and done,” according to White, and will become the most expensive production the UFC has put together. The UFC has also taken on a title sponsor for the first time with Riyadh Season being attached to the event.
O’Malley will be making the second defense of his title. After knocking out Aljamain Sterling to claim the championship last August, he went on to avenge a loss to Marlon Vera with a unanimous decision win in March. The title defense against Dvalishvili, winner of 10 straight fights, has long been rumored and will finally come to fruition in September. Dvalishvili is coming off of a dominant decision win over former two-division champion Henry Cejudo in February.
Grasso and Shevchenko will meet for a third consecutive time in the co-main event. Grasso stunned Shevchenko with a fourth-round submission to win the title in March 2023. The two met again last September with the fight ending in a controversial split draw. The two were tabbed as head coaches on “The Ultimate Fighter” series, with the expectation that they would meet after the conclusion of the season.
Also featured on the card will be a featherweight clash between Diego Lopes and Brian Ortega. The two were set to meet at UFC 303, but Ortega fell ill the day of the fight and was replaced by Dan Ige. Lopes would go on to win and targeted Noche UFC for his next fight. The UFC obliged and rebooked what is likely a featherweight eliminator bout.
The 10-fight card will take place during Mexican Independence Weekend, just minutes away from the recently announced boxing match between Canelo Alvarez and Edgar Berlanga at T-Mobile Arena.