UFC: Dvalishvili keeps bantamweight title vs O’Malley; Usman beats Buckley

Merab Dvalishvili has effortlessly defeated Sean O’Malley successful the main lawsuit of the Mixed Martial Art’s (MMA) Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) 316 nighttime successful New Jersey, United States (US), securing a third-round modified choke triumph successful their rematch to clasp the bantamweight championship.

With United States President Donald Trump watching from cageside connected Saturday, Dvalishvili (win-loss grounds of 20-4 MMA) emphatically displayed his wrestling basal to tyre retired the erstwhile champion and marque an statement arsenic 1 of the sport’s champion bantamweights, possibly of each time.

Dvalishvili, who won astatine 4:42 of the 3rd circular for his 13th consecutive victory, said helium would invited his adjacent rubric defence against Cory Sandhagen (win-loss grounds of 18-5 successful MMA), a victor of 4 of his past 5 fights.

“You’re the man, let’s go,” Dvalishvili said, indicating that helium would beryllium funny successful warring Sandhagen next.

O’Malley confirmed the nonaccomplishment is simply a insignificant setback, reassuring of a dependable return. “100 percent, convey you guys for coming out,” helium said.

The women’s bantamweight rubric changed hands successful the co-main event, arsenic Kayla Harrison submitted Julianna Pena with a second-round kimura.

Harrison and Pena embraced successful the Octagon afterwards, showing utmost people for 1 different aft Harrison controlled each facet of the fight. Harrison said during her post-fight interrogation that her value chopped was truthful draining connected Thursday nighttime that she “wanted to quit”, but it would person been a mistake successful her eyes, fixed that astir fighters successful MMA bash not triumph a UFC title.

US President Donald Trump (R) and girl Ivanka Trump be a UFC 316 event, headlined by a rematch betwixt Georgian mixed martial creator Merab Dvalishvili and US mixed martial creator Sean O’Malley, astatine the Prudential Center successful Newark, New Jersey, June 14, 2025 [Andrew Caballero-Reynolds/AFP]

Former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt fell abbreviated against Raoni Barcelos successful a lacklustre matter by unanimous decision, 29-28, 29-28, 29-28.

In middleweight action, Mansur Abdul-Malik earned a method determination implicit Cody Brundage 30-27, 29-28, 29-28. Abdul-Malik astir had a third-round full knockout 36 seconds in, but an accidental clash of heads changed the absorption of the fight, frankincense needing the judges to intervene.

Later, astatine UFC Fight Night successful Atlanta, Kamaru Usman returned to winning ways arsenic helium defeated Joaquin Buckley 49-46, 49-46, 48-47 successful a unanimous determination successful the main event.

“Those knockouts volition come,” Usman said aft his win. “I conscionable needed to get that monkey disconnected my back.”

The archetypal 2 rounds of the header welterweight attraction saw Usman (win-loss grounds of 21-4 successful MMA) transportation the equivalent of a shutout, effortlessly taking Buckley (win-loss grounds of 21-7 successful MMA) down and utilising his ground-and-pound to outstrike the St Louis, US, autochthonal 16-0 successful the important strikes category.

Round 3 started beardown for Buckley arsenic helium recovered his striking scope earlier Usman achieved his 3rd takedown successful 4 attempts. Round 4 was chiefly connected the feet, arsenic Buckley landed his champion combinations of the combat but could not unafraid a comeback finish. Usman took Buckley down again, securing the backmost equine presumption arsenic the circular ended.

Round 5 saw some men commercialized blows, but it was excessively little, excessively precocious for Buckley, who had a six-fight unbeaten streak snapped. It was Usman’s archetypal triumph since helium held the rubric successful November 2021.

Buckley was gracious successful defeat, suffering his archetypal nonaccomplishment astatine welterweight.

“We’re conscionable getting started, baby,” Buckley said. “We’ll beryllium back.”

Kamaru Usman (red gloves) fights Joaquin Buckley (blue gloves) during UFC Fight Night astatine State Farm Arena successful Atlanta, Georgia, US, June 14, 2025 [Brett Davis-Imagn Images via Reuters]

The co-main lawsuit besides needed the cards, arsenic erstwhile two-time strawweight champion Rose Namajunas earned a highly competitory unanimous decision, 30-27, 30-27, 29-28 implicit Miranda Maverick.

In middleweight, Edmen Shahbazyan astir finished Andre Petroski with a would-be third-round full knockout earlier walking distant with a unanimous decision, 30-27, 30-27, 29-28. The triumph marked Shahbazyan’s archetypal agelong of back-to-back wins since 2019, his archetypal determination triumph since 2018.

The UFC’s docket goes planetary with a Fight Night instalment a week from Saturday successful Azerbaijan, headlined by a airy heavyweight non-championship five-rounder betwixt erstwhile champion Jamahal Hill (12-3 MMA) and ex-title challenger Khalil Rountree Jr (14-6 MMA).