The first three fights on the UFC 306 main card had everyone hyped up. Ronaldo Rodriguez, Esteban Ribovics, and Diego Lopes secured decision wins but the back-and-forth action compensated for the lack of finishes.
There was a mixed reaction towards the co-main and main event of the night in MMA circles, though. Alexa Grasso was completely dominated by Valentina Shevchenko in their trilogy after the exciting first two fights. Similarly, Sean O'Malley had a few good moments but had no answer for Merab Dvalishvili's wrestling and pace.
Daniel Cormier compared the two title fights at UFC 306 and explained what made the main event relatively better than the co-main...
Daniel Cormier Claims Sean O'Malley vs. Merab Dvalishvili Was More Exciting Than Alexa Grasso vs. Valentina Shevchenko Despite Similar Outcome
Cormier recently admitted Grasso vs. Shevchenko to be lackluster while reacting to UFC 306 on his YouTube channel. He hesitated but called "Bullet" the better fighter between the two.
Although Dvalishvili had a similar game plan against O'Malley, the former UFC double champ credited "Suga" for maintaining threats throughout the fight. On the flip side, Grasso spent much of the fight trying to get back on her feet and gathering failed submission attempts.
It was not the funniest fight. It felt like the Merab fight was a little more intriguing because of the danger that Sean O'Malley always seemed to possess. But, Alexa just got dominated and she's going to have to figure that out. She seemed to spend a lot of time trying to fight off of her back because she knew she would get taken down. But all that did was allow for time to run and when time runs and you're on your back, you're losing. Sure, she had some good submission attempts but that's not enough.
"The Machine" beat O'Malley via decision comfortably but the latter landed several good shots and won the last round with constant body shots. Fans could sense a finish whenever the fight went to the feet.
The former women's UFC flyweight champion, according to Cormier, could not gain Shevchenko's respect in striking or on the ground. He expected Grasso to show more urgency and hopes that she fixes these holes in her game going forward.