There’s a new bantamweight king in town, and his name is Merab Dvalishvili! At UFC 306, the Georgian faced off against Sean O’Malley in a highly anticipated clash. While the title was on the line, so was a chance at revenge for Aljamain Sterling, Dvalishvili’s long-time friend and training partner who was knocked out by ‘Suga’ when he became the champion at UFC 292 in 2023.

The bout was a display of the Georgian’s relentless pressure pitted against O’Malley’s distance control and ‘sniper’ like striking. The result? After 5-rounds, the judges declared Merab Dvalisvhili the winner via unanimous decision. However, the scoring for the bout has caused some eyebrows to be raised and the new champion had a unique take on the judging for the fight!

Merab Dvalishvili makes a statement at UFC 306 but the judges scoring leaves him with an interesting reaction

Merab Dvalishvili’s victory at UFC 306 was anything but easy. The fight kicked off with Sean O’Malley asserting his usual confident style, switching stances and even attempting a flashy wheel kick early in the first round. But Merab, on a ten-fight win streak, wasn’t fazed. His aggressive pressure paid off with multiple takedowns, leaving O’Malley scrambling back to his feet.

By the second round, O’Malley adjusted his game plan, targeting the body more. Yet Merab’s tenacity shone through. As the fight wore on, O’Malley found brief moments of success. However, Dvalishvili continued to dictate the pace, securing key takedowns and smothering O’Malley with his grinding style.

In the final round, O’Malley showed flashes of brilliance, landing a front-body kick that seemed to hurt the Georgian. But it was too little, too late. After five grueling rounds, ‘The Machine’ secured the bantamweight title by unanimous decision over Sean O’Malley. Yet, it wasn’t the punches or takedowns that left fans buzzing—it was the judges’ scorecards.

Despite dominating most of the fight, two judges awarded O’Malley the 3rd and 5th rounds. Surprised? You’re not alone. UFC color commentator Joe Rogan didn’t hold back, asking Dvalishvili, “Were you surprised how close the judges scored it?”

The newly crowned champion responded by stating, “No, I don’t pay attention because sometimes we so crazy judges scored and it’s MMA we don’t know sometimes how they score…” It seems in a sport as unpredictable as MMA, even the fighters themselves remain perplexed by how decisions are made! So, what’s next for the new bantamweight king? Because there’s a list of contenders raring to get a chance at the belt and it includes a member of ‘Team Khabib’!

‘The Machine’ isn’t backing down from challengers for the bantamweight crown

Umar Nurmagomedov has surged up the rankings after his win over Cory Sandhagen in August and now holds the no.2 spot in the 135 lbs. division. But when asked about his thoughts on the match-up at the UFC 306 media day, Dvalishvili wasn’t fazed at all.

He responded by indicating that he was focused on Sean O’Malley, but stated, “If Umar is my next opponent, that’s fine. Me and my team, we will work and we will train. That fight, I think it’s easy for me. That fight is no problem for me. I will dominate him.”

But could there be another fighter that interests him more? ‘The Machine’ had an answer to that as well! He shared that, “What excites me more: Deiveson Figueiredo. He is a former champion, I already beat three former champions. Sean O’Malley is champion now. He will be my fourth champion, and if I fight Figueiredo that will be my fifth champion.”

Well, now having added Sean O’Malley’s name to his win streak, Dvalishvili is poised to defend his throne against all comers. Will we see him take on Umar Nurmagomedov next? Or will Deiveson Figueiredo be the next challenger? Let us know what you think is the most exciting matchup for the new bantamweight champion!