San Diego, CA — UFC middleweight Gerald Meerschaert fought on the last card with fans prior to the coronavirus pandemic, two and a half years ago.
That was UFC 248. Now, after a host of empty arena shows, Meerschaert gets fans back at UFC San Diego on Saturday night. He also gets Bruno Silva, a dangerous striker who is also adept on the ground, with a black belt of his own.
“He has a well-rounded skill set, and he knows what he’s doing,” Meerschaert observed during this week’s UFC San Diego media day. “And he’s good about ending up on top. If you’re not ready for those blows to come crashing down on you, he could put your lights out.”
The lack of hype around “GM3,” especially given his finish rate, has not gone unnoticed. At the same time, Meerschaert appears to understand it, “I don’t talk that much, I’m just like a regular guy, so no one wants to be hopping on that bandwagon I guess.”
Meerschaert, a longtime Roufusport fighter, did essentially his entire camp at Kill Cliff MMA this time out.
“Roufusport has been my home for a long time. I’ll always be good with those guys, but they’re just more in a rebuilding phase right now,” he explained. “A lot of the bigger guys and more experienced guys either retired or have moved on to go somewhere else. So they just have a lot of young, up-and-coming guys and they’re all lighter weights. So I just had to find somewhere where I could get the work I needed.”
UFC San Diego takes place this Saturday, August 13, 2022 at the Pechanga Arena in San Diego, California. Watch the full media day with Gerald Meerschaert above.
