UFC 306 Stories: How Sphere and Sean Suga Will Make History

At first glance, the UFC’s approach to celebrating Mexican Independence Day this weekend seems puzzling.

UFC 306 takes place on Saturday at the Sphere Arena in Las Vegas, and features a fight between an Irish-American from Montana and a New Yorker from the Republic of Georgia. Adding to the surprising factor, the event is sponsored by an arm of the Saudi Arabian government.

Branding and prizes aside, though, there will indeed be a Mexican theme running through the second annual UFC Noche (ESPN+ PPV, 10 p.m. ET). Before the main event between men’s bantamweight champion Sean O’Malley and Merab Dvalishvili, all nine other bouts of the evening will feature a Mexican-born or Mexican-American fighter. The co-main event pits women’s flyweight champion Alexa Grasso — from Guadalajara, Jalisco — against former world champion Valentina Shevchenko, completing an already twisty trilogy.

Beyond the competition, the atmosphere of the night promises to transport fans visually and audibly beyond the borders. The first sporting event at the Sphere, a state-of-the-art entertainment venue that opened last year near the Las Vegas Strip, will utilize the incredible technology built into the massive ring structure. Throughout the night, the UFC will use a 160,000-square-foot wraparound LED screen and a high-quality sound system to tell the story of combat sports in Mexico.

“It’s basically a love letter to the Mexican people and their culture,” CEO Dana White said a few weeks ago on The Pat McAfee Show.

Championship fights. Stunning production. High stakes. There will be stories to tell about the football extravaganza of UFC 306. Here are some stories worth paying attention to.

1. Is the real star of the show the stage itself?

Title fights are great, but a night of fisticuffs in the Sphere is a once-in-a-lifetime affair. And you can take that literally, if White has anything to say about it—which he did. “This is going to be a one-time fight,” the UFC president told reporters in the spring. “Because I wanted to do it.”

So what will Saturday’s once-in-a-lifetime concert look like? Judging by the colorful visuals visitors have seen so far at the $2.3 billion facility, the Sphere offers artists and other performers an empty space with seemingly endless possibilities for an immersive multimedia experience. The UFC isn’t known for subtlety, so expect something big and bold—and hopefully not over-the-top.

The fight organizer is keeping specific details under wraps, but in an interview with ESPN’s Pat McAfee, White said, “We’re going to tell the history of fighting in Mexico, from the beginning of time to the future, throughout the rest of the night.”

2. Will Suga Shun be able to hold on? (He better not.)

Men’s Lightweight Championship: Sean O’Malley (champion) vs. Merab Dvalishvili

O’Malley has 12 knockouts in his 18 career wins, and he would be wise to make an early stand Saturday to score another knockout. If that doesn’t happen, the champion will have to do his best to stay upright and keep his opponent at bay. But that’s easier said than done. Dvalishvili is known as “The Machine,” and his fuel is relentless wrestling.

In his 12 UFC fights, Dvalishvili has 79 takedowns, the most among active fighters and 11 behind all-time leader Georges St-Pierre. The record will be up for grabs on Saturday. Dvalishvili has 10 takedowns in four fights, including in his only previous five-round bout — against former champion Petr Yan last year, when he scored 11 takedowns from an astonishing 49 attempts. Yan, by the way, fought O’Malley a few months ago and scored six takedowns.

Can O’Malley’s kicks, knees and powerful right hands make Dvalishvili think twice before trying to take him down time and time again? Just thinking about it is exhausting.

3. Is the co-main event a remake of ‘Groundhog Day’?

Women’s Flyweight Championship: Alexa Grasso (champion) vs. Valentina Shevchenko

Grasso vs Shevchenko. Shevchenko vs Grasso. Over and over.

For more than two years, this bout has been the complete title shot for the 125-pound champion, with no surprises in the picture. The last time the two didn’t face off in a championship match in the division was in June 2022, when Tayla Santos lost to Shevchenko via split decision. Since then, all 11 UFC titles have changed hands. Santos is no longer even in the UFC; she will compete for the PFL season championship in November.

The truth is, Grasso and Shevchenko still have business to settle. Grasso ended Shevchenko’s seemingly untouchable reign—seven title defenses in just over four years—with a shock victory in March 2023. Shevchenko was in charge of that fight until Grasso countered a spinning kick in the fourth round by regaining control and, in the blink of an eye, sinking in the finishing choke. Then, in the rematch last September, Grasso retained the title by the narrowest of margins, a split draw. It was a strange but fitting result after a fight that some were certain Shevchenko would win, others felt went Grasso’s way and still others feel strongly that it was correctly called a draw.

It’s time to settle this and move on.

4. Perform two missions on the ground.

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Dan Ige and Diego Lopez compete for the title in a short-lived co-main event.

Dan Ige and Diego Lopez compete in all three rounds in the co-main event of UFC 303.

Featherweight: Brian Ortega vs. Diego Lopez

When this main card fight is over, Lopez won’t be out of action all night. The next bout will feature his training partner Alexa Grasso, who is also his jiu-jitsu student. That makes Lopez the man who trained Grasso back on the track that made her last year’s champion.

For Lopez to reach the same heights, he will need to deal with Ortega, a former title contender. Lopez’s wrestling prowess will be tested in this fight. Ortega has the skills to turn Lopez the teacher into Lopez the defeated student.

5. The risks are high…and uncertain.

Women’s Bantamweight: Irene Aldana vs. Norma Dumont

Dumont has won seven of her last eight fights. Aldana’s only losses since 2018 have been to champions — current world champion Raquel Pennington and former champions Amanda Nunes and Holly Holm. This could be the first title challenger.

Or not. Kayla Harrison, the newest UFC recruit, will fight Caitlin Vieira on Oct. 5 — the same night Pennington defends her belt against another former champion, Julianna Peña. A win for Harrison, who has a higher profile and personality as a fighter than Aldana or Dumont, would likely put her at the top of the list of contenders for the belt.

Could a dazzling performance by Aldana or Dumont change this dynamic? It wouldn’t be the first time.

6. Make the most of your start.

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Raul Rosas Jr. submits Ricky Turcios in front of an enthusiastic crowd.

Raul Rosas Jr. celebrates after submitting Ricky Turcios with a rear-naked choke at UFC Fight Night.

Men’s Bantamweight: Raul Rosas Jr. vs. Orikling

Raul Rosas Jr. is 19 years old and has already had what some would consider a full mixed martial arts career. He has had 10 fights against grown men since turning pro shortly after his 17th birthday. After earning a spot on the UFC roster via Dana White’s Contender Series in late 2022, Rosas has fought four times in the Octagon, winning all but one of them. Most impressively, he has bounced back from his only loss: He has won two, both by finish.

The young Mexican-American will face a tough test against Orikling, a professional fighter with 37 professional fights. The veteran fighter from China made his professional fighting debut in 2005 – when Rosas was 11 years old.

7, 8, 9 and 10. 10 reps and it’s done?

UFC pay-per-view events are notorious for two things: high-profile mixed martial arts and sleep deprivation. With 12 to 14 fights on a typical evening schedule, a big card can run for more than seven hours on air, and the main event often doesn’t start until around 1 a.m. Eastern Time.

So seeing only 10 fights on the weekend schedule is refreshing. Maybe it’s a temporary shift, or the fact that the show is being held at the Sphere. Or maybe it’s a sign of the trend in the sport to speed up matches. MMA can’t enforce a throw clock like baseball, but fight organizers have the ability to cut back on a traditional show.

Fans will still be burning the midnight oil, as the main card features five fights, as usual, and starts at 10 p.m. ET. But the later start (7:30) should leave fans with the energy to continue the night.