Sean O’Malley has some serious self-reflection ahead after a forgettable performance saw him drop the UFC bantamweight title at UFC 306.
Despite his pre-fight boasts of a quick finish, the former champ was outworked and outwrestled by the relentless Merab Dvalishvili, who piled on six takedowns and dominated with over 10 minutes of control time.
The judges saw it clear: a unanimous decision loss for O’Malley, with Dvalishvili walking out as the new bantamweight king.
UFC boss Dana White didn’t mince words when asked about O’Malley’s showing at the post-fight presser. “He looked flat,” White said. “He didn’t look sharp.”
While O’Malley did have one shining moment in the final round—a vicious front kick to the body that visibly hurt Dvalishvili—it wasn’t enough to swing momentum. O’Malley charged in to capitalize, but Dvalishvili evaded further damage, riding out the clock and sealing the belt.
Aside from that single burst, O’Malley never truly had the Georgian in danger.
White pointed to inactivity as the key issue, highlighting O’Malley’s low punch output across most of the fight. “He didn’t look crisp until the last round,” White continued. “I looked at the punch stats, and he only threw like six punches in some of the rounds.”
The numbers tell the tale. Official stats show O’Malley landed just five significant strikes in the second round and six in the fourth. Across the entire bout, O’Malley only connected with 47 significant strikes to Dvalishvili’s 82.
O’Malley’s frustration was clear, but White couldn’t pinpoint the root cause of the champ’s lackluster effort. One thing is certain—Dvalishvili’s non-stop pace and suffocating pressure didn’t give O’Malley an inch to breathe, keeping him off rhythm and unable to surmount any real offense.
With the loss, O’Malley relinquishes the belt he worked so hard to claim and defended twice.