Reinier de Ridder didn’t have the blowout performance he wanted in his octagon debut against Gerald Meerschaert at UFC Fight Night 247, but he got the win and a finish.
Former two-division ONE Championship titleholder de Ridder (18-2 MMA, 1-0 UFC) went back-and-forth with Meerschaert (37-18 MMA, 12-10 UFC) on the feet and ground before he finally snatched an arm-triangle choke for the tap at the 1:44 mark of Round 3 in the middleweight bout at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas (via X):
REINIER DE RIDDER DROPS GERALD MEERSCHAERT LATE IN THE FIRST!#MMA #UFC #UFCVegas100 pic.twitter.com/ewcCEWI0XB
— MMA Frenzy (@mma_frenzy) November 10, 2024
Reinier de Ridder submits Gerald Meerschaert in round 3 with an arm triangle.#ufc #ufcfightnight #ufcvegas100 #submission #bjj #armtriangle pic.twitter.com/Aj05xjV2Fc
— Alex Silverstein (@silversteinmma) November 10, 2024
Meerschaert was on point with his boxing to start the fight, tagging de Ridder multiple times and rejecting takedown attempts. He found comfort as the minutes wore on, however, and became more aggressive with his grappling pursuits before landing a huge left hand that dropped Meerschaert in the final seconds of the opening round.
With confidence on his side going into the second frame, de Ridder secured an early takedown and established top control. He burned several minutes off the clock before a sloppy submission attempt cost him position and led to Meerschaert getting top position of his own. Meerschaert landed some decent ground-and-pound to get some momentum back, but de Ridder got a scramble and late takedown to end the round.
The fight was still winnable for both sides going into the final round. Meerschaert made the first big takedown attempt of the round, which was stopped. De Ridder answered with a trip takedown, and then some high-energy reversals, transitions, and submission attempts unfolded over several minutes. De Ridder locked in the arm-triangle choke and got the tap.