UFC Fight Night 178: Covington vs. Woodley - Predictions and Picks

#3 UFC Middleweight Division: Khamzat Chimaev vs. Gerald Meerschaert

Prospect Khamzat Chimaev has garnered a lot of hype in a short time with the UFC.

For a long time, some fans have argued that “the UFC doesn’t look to make stars anymore.” Simply put, that’s not true, and the emergence of Chimaev is a testament to that. The Swedish-based Chechen fighter came into the UFC in July and smashed John Phillips on late notice, then followed that up 10 days later with a brutal TKO of Rhys McKee.

Since then, ‘Borz’ has been hyped beyond belief by the UFC, to the point where the promotion has actually announced his next opponent – Demian Maia – before he’s even fought Meerschaert this weekend. The last prospect to get this much hype was probably Israel Adesanya, and of course, he’s now a UFC champion. Can Chimaev follow in his footsteps?

To be honest, it’s impossible to say right now. ‘Borz’ clearly has absolutely tremendous skills. Despite being a natural Welterweight rather than Middleweight, he threw Phillips around like a ragdoll before submitting him.

McKee, meanwhile, was beaten in incredibly dominant fashion despite being a high-level prospect in his own right. ‘Skeletor’ barely landed a strike on the Chechen fighter before being pounded out in three minutes.

It must be said, though, that Meerschaert is on a different level to Chimaev’s last two opponents. ‘GM3’ isn’t going to be contending for the UFC title anytime soon. But he’s a large Middleweight with a ton of experience – 44 professional fights to Chimaev’s eight – and more than anything, he knows how to finish. Of his 31 wins, only two have come via decision.

The issue that Meerschaert is going to have here is one he’s had throughout his UFC tenure. He’s not the best athlete in the division, and he’s up against a highly explosive and fast opponent with the capability of outwrestling him comfortably.

Looking back at his UFC career, all of his losses – to Thiago Santos, Jack Hermansson, Kevin Holland, Eryk Anders, and Ian Heinisch – came against superior athletes. And while Chimaev is definitely likely to be giving up some size in this fight, is it going to stop him taking Meerschaert down? In all honesty, it isn’t likely.

Even if Meerschaert can keep this fight standing, there’s no guarantee of success. He’s a passable striker, and his UFC TKO of Eric Spicely in 2017 was impressive. But how he’ll deal with the sheer aggression of Chimaev is anyone’s guess.

Can ‘GM3’ win this fight? For sure. His experience means that realistically, Chimaev won’t be putting him in positions he’s never seen before. And if the young Chechen gets overconfident or makes an error, then Meerschaert definitely has the ability to finish him, particularly with a submission.

However, gut feeling and what I’ve seen from Chimaev tells me that the hype is real, and there’s every chance he could see a Khabib Nurmagomedov-level trajectory in the future. I think he’ll take Meerschaert down and pound him out, sending another message to the rest of the UFC.

The Pick: Chimaev via first-round TKO