UFC books Reinier de Ridder's debut against Gerald Meerschaert

Reinier de Ridder will not make his UFC debut against a seeded opponent, but he is not facing a weak opponent either.

On Tuesday, news broke that De Ridder, a former two-division ONE Championship titleholder, had signed a contract with the UFC, and on Wednesday it was announced that he will face Gerald Meerschaert in a middleweight bout on November 9 at a UFC Fight Night event at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.

Two people familiar with the situation confirmed the booking to MMA Junkie after UFC first reported it on Eurosport's Instagram.

De Ridder (17-2 MMA, 0-0 UFC), 34, previously held the ONE Championship middleweight and light heavyweight titles. In nine fights with ONE, de Ridder was victorious in his first seven before losing both of his title belts to Anatoly Malykhin in consecutive fights. The Dutchman last competed for the UAE Warriors in July and won by first-round TKO, ending his losing streak.

In Meerschaert (37-17 MMA, 12-9 UFC), de Ridder will face a seasoned UFC veteran who recently set the promotion's record for most middleweight finishes. Last month, Meerschaert bounced back and defeated Edmen Shahbazyan for his 12th career win in the 185-pound division, surpassing UFC Hall of Famer Anderson Silva. It was Meerschaert's second consecutive submission victory.

The program for the UFC Fight Night on November 9th includes:

• Cody Garbrandt vs. Miles Johns
• Luana Pinheiro vs Gillian Robertson
• Mansur Abdul-Malik vs. Dusko Todorovic
• Melissa Mullins vs Montserrat Rendon
• Tresean Gore vs. Antonio Trocoli
• Bernardo Sopaj vs. Ricky Turcios
• Denise Gomes vs. Karolina Kowalkiewicz
• Reinier de Ridder against Gerald Meerschaert