Gerald Meerschaert ate some hard shots in the first round of his bout with Makhmud Muradov at UFC Vegas 35, but overcame the damage to win by submission in the second round.
Kicking off the UFC Vegas 35 main card on Saturday, Gerald Meerschaert once again found himself in a gatekeeper role. The veteran, who in recent times has faced the likes of Khamzat Chimaev, Deron Winn, and Ian Heinich as they broke into the middleweight division, seemed to be a litmus test for 185lb hopefuls. This time out, it was Makhmud Muradov, undefeated in the UFC, and the first MMA fighter repped by Floyd Mayweather’s The Money Team.
Meerschaert took it right to Muradov, throwing combinations while backing Muradov to the cage. Muradov circled out and landed a pair of punches, but ate another combination. Meerschaert landed a body kick, but unfortunately poked Muradov in the eye to put a halt to the quick start the fight had. When action resumed, Meerschaert connected with a three punch combination but was stung by a hard Muradov punch. Another one made Meerschaert take a seat and the tides turned. Muradov proceeded to land big shots several times that grounded Meerschaert, but couldn’t get a finishing blow. Meerschaert then landed a kick below the belt, his second foul of the round, but a poinnt was not taken. When they got back to it, Meerschaert landed a hard left hand, then ate a big hook from Muradov. A head kick found a home for Meerschaert and Muradov responded with a right hand that made his opponent stumble. Meerschaert then ended the round strong with a big left hook and a takedown.
Thing are heating up quickly between these two in RD 1 🔥 #UFCVegas35 pic.twitter.com/5nMUE3GxGw
— UFC (@ufc) August 29, 2021
The second round started with Meerschaert showing aggression with his pace. He ate a hook from Muradov then tried to take advantage of Muradov slipping, but Muradov popped up quickly. A pair of big left hands connected for Gerald Meerschaert, who then took Muradov down along the fence. Meerschaert then took his back and sunk in a rear-naked choke to pull off the upset.
Biggest underdog on the card cashing in the ticket tonight! 🎟 #UFCVegas35 pic.twitter.com/YxBgjSllfM
— UFC (@ufc) August 29, 2021
Gerald Meerschaert def. Makhmud Muradov by Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) in Round 2 (1:49)
