Oleksiejczuk’s Left Hand Shut Down Meerschaert’s Grappling

Michał Oleksiejczuk stopped Gerald Meerschaert by TKO at 3:03 of the first round at UFC 319 on August 16, 2025. The middleweight preliminary bout at United Center in Chicago ended after repeated left hands opened the way for a ground-strike finish.

Speed forced Meerschaert onto the defensive

Oleksiejczuk looked quicker from the opening exchanges, finding his left hand while Meerschaert tried to close the distance. The American’s attempts to change levels did not produce the takedown he needed.

Instead, the Polish striker repeatedly punished those entries. One left hand knocked Meerschaert’s mouthguard loose, illustrating the difficulty of crossing striking range without first disrupting Oleksiejczuk’s timing.

Another clean connection created the finish

A further left hand dropped Meerschaert to the canvas. Oleksiejczuk followed immediately and landed the punches that brought the referee’s intervention.

The official result recorded a first-round TKO rather than a submission or decision. Meerschaert’s ground game never became a sustained attacking platform against an opponent who kept the important exchanges on his terms.

A second straight stoppage strengthened Oleksiejczuk’s rebound

Oleksiejczuk had recently moved his training to Brazil and worked with the Fighting Nerds team. The Chicago performance followed an April victory over Sedriques Dumas at UFC 314, also achieved by first-round strikes.

Meerschaert entered after defeats to Reinier de Ridder and Brad Tavares. His attempt to halt that skid instead ended with another setback, while Oleksiejczuk left with consecutive early finishes and renewed momentum in the middleweight division.

Sources

• Cageside Press: left hands, failed takedowns and training background
• UFC: official 3:03 first-round TKO
• UFC: April 12 Dumas bout and first-round result
• United Center: event date and Chicago venue

Tags

UFC, MMA