Former two-weight ONE Championship gold holder, Reinier de Ridder has landed in the Octagon with aplomb tonight in the co-headliner of UFC Vegas 100 — taking out former training partner and fellow grappling talent, Gerald Meerschaert with a triangle choke submission.
de Ridder, a former undisputed ONE Championship middleweight and light heavyweight champion, made his anticipated debut in the UFC tonight, off the back of a brief outing in the UAE Warriors promotion following his exit from the Chatri Sityodtong-led organizational banner.
And struggling early with the sharpest of Meerschaert’s striking on the feet, de Ridder managed to likely sway the opening round in the final 10-seconds, landing a winging shot to sit down the grappling ace before the buzzer.